Postdoctoral position in Machine Learning Based Disease Prediction from Large-Scale Multi-Source Data Ref. RN002280

As part of the Youth-GEMs H2021 project, we offer an exciting data science postdoctoral position at the Universitat de Barcelona and its Artificial Intelligence in Medicine Lab (BCN-AIM). The selected researcher will develop algorithms and tools for predictive modelling of individual-specific mental health and disease trajectories using multi-factorial approaches, integrating biological, environmental and clinical predictors. This position offers the opportunity to take part in the emerging fields of both artificial intelligence and digital health. 

We are thus seeking candidates with a PhD and expertise in an area pertinent to the project and experience in machine learning, biomedical informatics, bioinformatics, advanced statistics, computer science, digital health and/or programming.  

Candidates must have excellent teamwork and communication skills, be enthusiastic about their research, and have creative problem-solving skills. The successful candidate is expected to be able to organise their work with minimal supervision, prioritise tasks to meet project deadlines, and represent the lab at meetings. Due to continual collaboration with Youth-GEMs consortium partners from across Europe, advanced oral and writing English knowledge are required. 

The Youth-GEMs H2021 project will leverage a unique collection of birth cohorts data, other types of longitudinal data, and clinical registers to characterise mental health trajectories and underlying interplay between genetic and environmental factors.  A key objective will be to empower help-seeking young people and clinicians in their (self)assessment of mental health and prediction of future. The Youth-GEMs project will also generate a body of new knowledge constituting a solid basis for a better and deeper molecular neurobiological understanding of brain development and brain (dys)functioning as well as for understanding genetic architecture in a trans-syndromal, neurodevelopmental, environmentally influenced and neurobiological meaningful context.  

The University of Barcelona (UB), founded in 1450, is one of the oldest universities in Spain. It comprises a student body of 84,370 and 4,548 research staff members. With 73 undergraduate programs, 273 graduate programs and 48 doctorate programs, UB is the largest university in Barcelona and Catalonia. The UB is ranked the first Spanish university according to several rankings (QS World University Rankings 2020, ARWU/Shanghai Ranking 2020). It is particularly interested in fostering international relations and, for many years, has managed an average of 150 European projects per year. Since January 2010, the University of Barcelona is part of the prestigious League of European Universities Research (LERU).  

The candidate with join the Artificial Intelligence in Medicine Lab (www.bcn-aim.org), which is an integral part of the University of Barcelona’s Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science. It is a young and dynamic research lab, highly active in international projects, and composed of 20 enthusiastic academics, researchers, students and research managers, with expertise in data science, machine/deep learning, biomedical informatics, biomedical ethics, and health-related applications.