POSTDOCTORAL ASSOCIATE
New York University Tandon School of Engineering
The Gibbons Lab at NYU Tandon School of Engineering is seeking to hire a Post Doctoral Associate to work in computational microbiome science and precision medicine.
New York University (NYU) is one of the top private universities in the United States, and the Tandon School of Engineering, located in Brooklyn, NY, is deeply committed to excellence in teaching and learning. Tandon fosters student and faculty innovation and entrepreneurship that make a difference in the world. The Gibbons Lab ,(beginning September, 2026) will be housed within the new Institute for Engineering Health (IEH), an interdisciplinary center that integrates engineering, medicine, and the biological sciences to advance healthcare discovery, prevention, and treatment. Prof. Sean Gibbons is an international leader in the development of computational and experimental tools for studying the ecology, evolution, and function of host-microbiome systems, with applications in precision nutrition and personalized medicine.
Responsibilities
Candidates will be responsible for the design, execution, and dissemination of research projects spanning computational modeling of gut microbial communities, multi-omic data integration, bioinformatic method development, and translational human studies.
Specific activities may include:
building and validating community-scale metabolic models of the human gut microbiome using tools such as MICOM; analyzing large-scale metagenomic, metabolomic, transcriptomic, and clinical datasets from human cohorts
contributing to the design and analysis of dietary and drug/treatment intervention trials in collaboration with clinical partners at NYU Langone
investigating within-host evolutionary dynamics of gut commensal bacteria and the health consequences of these dynamics
exploring gut-brain axis mechanisms mediated by microbiome-derived metabolites;
developing and maintaining open-source bioinformatic tools for the microbiome research community;
preparing manuscripts for peer-reviewed publication and presenting findings at national and international conferences
actively contributing to lab meetings, journal clubs, and the broader NYU scientific community.
Salary range
In compliance with NYC’s Pay Transparency Act, the annual base salary for this position is $65,000–$80,000, depending on the candidate’s experience and qualifications.
Candidates should have a PhD in computational biology, bioinformatics, microbiology, genomics, systems biology, bioengineering, evolutionary biology, ecology, biophysics, applied mathematics, or a related quantitative field. Strong programming skills in Python and/or R are required. Experience with the analysis of multi-omic datasets (e.g., metagenomics, metabolomics, transcriptomics) and familiarity with gut microbiome research are expected. Familiarity with constraint-based metabolic modeling (e.g., flux balance analysis) and/or machine learning is a plus. Strong written and oral communication skills, interdisciplinary curiosity, a collaborative spirit, and a demonstrated commitment to reproducible and open science are essential.
Candidates for the gut-brain axis track should have a strong background in behavioral neuroscience, neuroendocrinology, or enteric nervous system biology. Experience with gut–brain signaling pathways, including those mediated by microbial metabolites derived from the diet, such as short-chain fatty acids, branch-chain fatty acids, or protein fermentation byproducts, is a plus. Familiarity with non-human animal model systems (e.g., germ-free mouse studies, behavioral assays) or human behavioral studies (e.g., behavior assessed from wearables or questionnaires) is desired. An interest in bridging mechanistic findings with translational human cohort and clinical intervention data is strongly valued.
Candidates will be required to present eligibility to work in the United States.
Applicants should submit, as one pdf, the following information:
an up-to-date CV that includes a complete list of publications,
a research statement that describes their interest and goals and how their research relates to this position,
copies of up to three relevant scientific papers,
names and contact information for three references.
All application materials should be submitted electronically via Interfolio and to:
[email protected]
Review of applications will begin as soon as possible and will continue until the position is filled. Expected start date is : September 1, 2026, with flexibility for the right candidate.
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