Scientist - Pathology Bioinformatician

Part of the Forestry Commission family, Forest Research (FR) is a world leader in applied forest science, providing evidence and practical solutions to policy makers, forestry professionals, land managers and anyone with green space, UK wide. With climate and biodiversity in crisis, and an increasing number of pests and diseases, our research is more vital than ever before. We advise on how woodlands can help combat climate change. We’re identifying tree species that will thrive in the future and seeking ways to safeguard those species at risk. Our research supports UK timber production because fewer imports reduce carbon emissions. We provide robust data on forests in Scotland, Wales and England, and provide evidence of the societal benefits of woodland. We do all this utilising the latest technology while working collaboratively with academia, partners and industry, nationally and internationally.

This role will develop and apply bioinformatic workflows and undertake genomic, transcriptomic and statistical analyses of DNA and RNA sequence data to investigate the biology, diversity and evolution of fungal and oomycete forest pathogens.

The Pathology team at FR tackles important tree health problems in UK forests, focusing on oomycete, fungal and bacterial pathogens. Current projects funding this position include the development of a DNA detection tool for oomycete forest pathogens based on Oxford Nanopore sequencing, comparative whole genome analyses of invasive oomycete and fungal pathogens to answer taxonomic and evolutionary questions and exploring the genetic basis of resistance in conifers to invasive Phytophthora species.

The role involves the following specific tasks, utilizing the computing resources provided by the James Hutton Institute’s Crop Diversity Cluster.

• Development of bioinformatic pipelines for Oxford Nanopore sequencing, specifically for: identification of oomycete species from metabarcoding data
• identification of causal pathogens from genomic DNA generated from infected tree samples
• Analyses of Illumina genomic sequences generated for historic fungal herbarium specimens, applying haplotype, PCA and other population genomic approaches to answer taxonomic and evolutionary questions
• Analysis of dual RNAseq data to identify genes and pathways associated with conifer resistance to invasive Phytophthora
• Contribution to research proposal development

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Please apply at Civil Service Jobs - GOV.UK. You will be asked to:

• A CV – setting out your career history, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role

We will use this information to assess your application against the essential criteria in the person specification.

Shortlist

The panel will select a shortlist of candidates whose applications best demonstrate suitability for the role, by considering the evidence provided against the Essential Criteria set out in the Person Specification. Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.

Sift is planned to take place week commencing 28 September 2026.

Interviews are planned to take place on 6 October 2026 on MS Teams.

At the Interview stage, you will be assessed on your experience and the 2 following behaviours: Delivering at Pace and Making Effective Decisions.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Candidates who are judged to be a near miss at interview may be considered for other positions in Forest Research which may be at a lower grade but have a potential skills match.

Diverse perspectives and experiences are critical to our success and we welcome applications from all people from all backgrounds with the experience and skills needed to perform this role.

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Visa Sponsorship

FR holds a licence to sponsor Skilled Workers under the Home Office points-based immigration system. Candidates wishing to apply should note that the likelihood of obtaining sponsorship would depend on an assessment of this role against defined criteria, which include:

o Whether the Job role has been identified as being a Critical Role in FR, which has been identified in the Workforce Plan, and / or

o Whether the Job role is a known Capability gap, which has been identified in the Workforce Plan for the relevant Centre, and

o Evidence of significant recruitment challenges in filling the Job role previously

Skilled Worker sponsorship may be available, subject to an application and assessment process and the Home Office points-based system.

For further details, please refer to the Sponsorship for Skilled Workers – guidance for applicants and managers on our website.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.