Postdoctoral researcher position at EPFL - AI for Science (Health, Biology)

Mission

A postdoctoral research position is open in the LTS4 laboratory of EPFL in the context of the SATURNA research initiative, dedicated to decoding the dynamic choreography of RNA, and to understanding how the process itself shapes disease states at cellular and molecular scales.

By combining AI innovation with RNA-focused, context-aware biology, SATURNA seeks to establish actionable principles of disease mechanisms, enabling new strategies to diagnose and treat complex human disorders.

SATURNA brings together expertise in artificial intelligence, computational RNA biology, molecular, cellular and clinical neuroscience. Within this framework, AI models are co-developed with domain experts to unlock concrete biological questions and accelerate their translation to clinic.

The large and interdisciplinary research initiative is developped by the University of Bern (Switzerland), the Università della Svizzera italiana (Lugano, Switzerland), the Idiap Research Institute (Martigny, Switzerland), the National University of Singapore, and EPFL (Switzerland). These partners are looking for talents in several domains of machine learning, AI, computational biology, and biology, to develop PhD theses across the main pillars of SATURNA, namely Language Models for RNA sequences, Graph representation learning and generative models, Knowledge-Augmented RNA modeling, Computational RNA biology and Experimental stem cell biology and RNA therapeutics.

Main duties and responsibilities

As a postdoctoral researcher in this program, you will be expected to develop a high quality research program, in close collaboration with partners of the SATURNA initiative.

You will also have other duties such as mentoring and supervision, subproject coordination, teaching, participation to publications and outreach events

Profile

We are looking for outstanding candidates with a PhD degree in computational biology, AI, computer science, electrical engineering, physics or applied maths, and with a strong aspiration for collaborative research of impact in biology or health. Excellent researck track and publication record are important. Good communication skills, enthusiasm, scientific curiosity, good organizational skills, rigor in experimental work and high level of motivation are important assets. Fluency in English is essential.

We offer

• A stimulating and international working environment
• Competitive salary and excellent working conditions – more information can be found on our website (https://www.epfl.ch/campus/services/human-resources/en/basic-starting-salary-of-doctoral-assistants-and-postdocs/)
• Opportunity to perform state-of-the-art research in one of the most dynamic scientific institutions in Europe.
• Opportunity to interact with internationally renowned experts, and with a strong team of postdoctoral researchers and PhD students Informations

Your application should contain:

• A motivation letter, which possibly includes the names of the SATURNA partners you would be particularly interested to collaborate with
• Detailed CV, full publication list, as well as 3 main publications (links, or pdf)
• Contact information
• The names and contact information of 3 references willing to write a recommendation letter

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, with an expected starting date in Fall 2026. Only complete applications, in a single PDF file, will be reviewed.

Interested by this exciting research initiative? Apply to join the program!