Job Description
APPLICATION CLOSING DATE: April 2nd, 2024
About The Institute
Human Technopole (HT) is a new interdisciplinary life science research institute, created and supported by the Italian government, with the aim of developing innovative strategies to improve human health. HT has the mission of conducting cutting-edge research and to translate innovation into methods and tools available to the entire National scientific community. To this end, HT is opening National Facilities that will provide world-class research infrastructure for Structural Biology, Light Imaging Microscopy, Genomics, Genome Engineering, and Data Handling and Analysis.
The National Facility for Data Handling and Analysis (NF-DaHa) will perform in-depth analysis of biological data using state-of-the-art computational methods for bioinformatics and image processing.
NFDHA Comprises Three Infrastructural Units (IU)
- IU1 Bioimage Analysis
- IU2 Omics Analysis
- IU3 Technology Development – DevOps and Web Development
IU3 (Technology Development – DevOps and Web Development) is responsible for scientific software development, with a focus on reproducibility, web application development, and DevOps activities. IU3 will ensure that the tools and pipelines developed within NF-DaHa are widely applicable, reproducible, and openly available to the scientific community. This team of software developers, web developers, and DevOps engineers will also develop web portals for data access and navigation, to maximise public use of data resources as they are established at HT.
The IU is currently looking to expand its core team with highly motivated people who will help shape the future of scientific application development in Italy, establishing high-quality standards, and bringing innovative technologies from the industry world at the service of research.[RL1]
We are searching for a mid-senior full-stack developer to bootstrap the unit, bringing to the table a wide range of competences on all aspects of web application development and life cycle. The selected candidate will take ownership of the design and implementation of scientific web applications, web portals, interactive data visualization / processing tools, and APIs, each of them highly tailored to solve specific problems, thus requiring different implementation approaches and timelines. Great engineering and design skills are thus required to be able to effectively convert the specific research community needs into reliable and intuitive applications, which entail a great effort on both the UX/UI and architectural sides. Due to the large-data driven nature of such applications, the successful candidate will need to manage heterogenous data sources to be integrated and efficiently stored and processed, taking advantage of many technologies spanning from relational /non-relational databases, to high-throughput cluster storage. All developed applications will be managed by an on-premises high performance IT infrastructure, managed by a dedicated team within HT, with whom the candidate will have to collaborate, to deploy solutions fulfilling architectural / security requirements. This aspect, which extends from networking, to security, to system administration, poses a further emphasis on the computer engineering skills required by the applicant.
Due to the high heterogeneity of tasks involved with this position, we do not require that the candidate fulfill all requirements from the beginning. The successful candidate will be given the opportunity to gradually develop his/her technical skills, by getting gradually exposed to various parts of the technology stack under the supervision of more senior unit members. Willingness to learn, adaptability, and enthusiasm for full-stack development will be paramount in ensuring a positive and successful integration within the unit.
Our Current Stack And Technologies
- Frontend solutions development: Vue.js, Nuxt.js, Astro, GraphQL Apollo, D3.js
- An internal library of Vue.js components
- An internal developed design system based on modern CSS
- Backend/ API development based on Node.js/Express, Python FastAPI, Celery
- Databases: MySQL, MongoDB, Neo4j, Redis
- CICD and sw management tools: GitLab
- Containerization and orchestration: Docker, Docker Compose, Kubernetes
- Security: OAuth 2.0, Keycloak
- Code Testing: Jest, Cypress, Vitest, Pytest
Our philosophy
- Code with best practices and design patterns in mind
- Carefully design applications from the very beginning, avoid technical debt
- Take ownership of style and appearance. Avoid the trap of escaping CSS using pre-built solutions and libraries
- Prioritize website accessibility and SEO support
- Build meaningful HTML pages with semantic HTML
- State Machines are beautiful
- Learn how to query databases before using ORMs/ ODMs
In IU3, our aim is to cultivate a close-knit team of highly skilled individuals who thrive on collaboration within a creative and welcoming environment. We're dedicated to supporting the Italian research community through our expertise and cutting-edge technologies, making a significant impact on the advancement of life sciences.
Key tasks and responsibilities
- Design and implementation of SPAs, SSGs and SSR websites/ web applications;
- Implementation, deployment, and maintenance of web applications, web-portals, tools, and internal libraries;
- Development of highly interactive data visualization tools;
- Design and implementation of APIs and services to collect, store, retrieve, and process large datasets;
- Design and implementation of databases (ER Models, Normalization, etc);
- Interaction with the HT research groups and other HT National Facilities, in particular the Omics Unit of NF-DaHa, to translate research needs into working solutions, gathering requirements, and participating in all phases of software design and development;
- Interacting with the resident ICT team to ensure the correct deployment of software solutions and compliance with HT’s infrastructure requirements.
Job Requirements
Essential requirements
- MSc in computer science/ engineering;
- Fluency in English – HT is an international research institute;
- Proven expertise in at least one between front-end and back-end development.
Preferred Requirements
- PhD in computer science / engineering;
- Experience with the technologies / libraries / frameworks included in our stack;
- Experience with cloud technologies;
- Basic knowledge of biology and computational biology;
- Experience in academic / research fields;
- Proven record of scientific publications.
Organizational And Social Skills
- Ability to interact effectively with other team members and work synergistically to drive projects forward;
- Ability to interact effectively with the researchers involved in assigned projects and get detailed descriptions of project goals, timelines and requirements to derive precise technical requirements and timeline estimations for projects completion;
- Strong commitment towards well documented code;
- Attitude towards solving complex, non-standard problems with innovative software architectures and solutions;
- Unstoppable and quick learner of innovative technologies, willing to attend online/in-presence courses and certification programs;
- Ability to work in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity.
Application Instructions
Please Apply By Sending
- a CV.
- a motivation letter in English.
- names and contacts of 2 referees.
For any inquiry about the call, please feel free to contact Riccardo De Lucia at riccardo.delucia@fht.org (this email address should not be used to send applications).
Why Human Technopole
HT seeks scientific excellence, we recruit the best scientific talents through international, open calls.
Our working environment is international, friendly, and inclusive. Our scientists work together across disciplines on research topics of biomedical relevance, leveraging synergies between their diverse skillsets and methodological approaches.
We believe that highly diverse teams yield the best and most innovative results.
We engage in outward-facing scientific activities aimed at benefiting the national and international research community. Training is also at the heart of our activity, with initiatives and opportunities for our staff, including scientific courses, conferences, and workshops.
Main Benefits
- Welfare plans.
- Canteen service.
- Work-life balance provisions.
- Italian language training for foreigners.
- Maternity leave up to 1 year and other support for new parents.
- Counseling.
- Possibility of flexible working hours
- Support for relocation.
- Institutional Laptop.
Special consideration will be given to candidates who are part of the protected categories list, according to L. 68/99.
Number of positions offered: 1
Contract offered: CCNL Chimico Farmaceutico, Fixed-term 3 years - employee level.
The position is based in Milan.
Salary Range: up to 48K, depending on the candidate' seniority.
Tax benefits where applicable.
