Research Engineer & IT Administrator (80-100%)

Department of Biomedical Engineering (DBE), University of Basel

Group: Analytics & Informatics for Child Health (AICH)
Starting date: As soon as possible or upon agreement
Duration: 2 years, with possibility of extension 

The Analytics & Informatics for Child Health (AICH) group develops AI/ML methods, digital tools, and secure data pipelines to advance pediatric healthcare. We work at the intersection of clinical medicine, machine learning, and data-intensive research, collaborating closely with hospitals, clinical IT teams, and research partners at the University of Basel.
We are looking for a motivated Research Engineer & IT Administrator who combines support for open research questions, strong technical engineering skills with hands-on experience in managing scientific computing infrastructure, data workflows, and operational IT needs within a research group.

Your position

• Develop and maintain data pipelines and reproducible ML/AI workflows (Python).
• Support clinical data ingestion, pseudonymization, and secure transfer to cluster environments.
• Build and manage containerized environments (Docker, Singularity) and orchestrate jobs via SLURM.
• Support researchers (PhD students/Postdocs) with data preparation, prototyping, and code organization.
• Contribute to infrastructure for MLOps (logging, experiment tracking, reproducible setups).
• Collaborate in ML/AI research projects and publications together with PhD students and postdocs.
• Participate in collaborative projects with clinical and technical partners.

• Maintain local group IT infrastructure (user accounts, laptop setup, access control, basic troubleshooting).
• Coordinate with UniBasel HPC  and DBE IT services (network access, storage, permissions, security).
• Ensure data security and compliance for sensitive health data (in collaboration with clinical IT partners).
• Manage group website updates and support digital communication tools.
• Oversee software licensing, hardware procurement, and inventory.

Your profile

• Master's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Engineering, or a related field.
• Strong programming skills in Python; experience with shell scripting.
• Familiarity with HPC or cloud compute environments, or motivation to learn SLURM/HPC workflow management.
• Familiarity with cloud or HPC environments.
• IT administration experience (Linux user management, updates, device setup).
• Understanding of data privacy and security, ideally in a clinical or research context.
• Experience with ML/AI workflows (MLFlow, PyTorch, W&B) is a plus.
• Knowledge of CMS systems (WordPress/Drupal) is an advantage.
• A high degree of independence: able to take ownership of tasks, drive projects forward, and proactively identify solutions.
• Strong problem-solving mindset; proactive and reliable.
• Clear communication, willingness to support colleagues, and comfort working in interdisciplinary teams.
• Fluent in English (spoken and written). German is an advantage but not required.

We offer you

• An exciting and meaningful role at the interface of medicine, AI, and digital health.
• A supportive and interdisciplinary research environment combining clinical, technical, and scientific work.
• Access to state-of-the-art computing infrastructure (HPC clusters).
• Opportunities for professional growth (HPC, MLOps, ML engineering, research software engineering).
• Depending on the candidate's background and research interest, the role may include participation in ML/AI publications.
• Flexible working arrangements and a collaborative team culture.
• Employment conditions in accordance with the University of Basel.

• CV
• Cover letter
• Contact information for 2–3 references
• (Optional) Links to GitHub/portfolio or previous technical work