Bioinformatics Scientist II

At Veracyte, we offer exciting career opportunities for those interested in joining a pioneering team that is committed to transforming cancer care for patients across the globe. Working at Veracyte enables our employees to not only make a meaningful impact on the lives of patients, but to also learn and grow within a purpose-driven environment.

The Position:

We are seeking a motivated and scientifically rigorous Bioinformatics Scientist II to contribute to the development of next-generation minimal residual disease (MRD) laboratory-developed tests (LDTs). This role will support assay development efforts through bioinformatics analysis, experimental design, data interpretation, and close collaboration with cross-functional teams.

Key Responsibilities

Bioinformatics Analysis & Assay Development

• Contribute to the design, development, evaluation, and optimization of NGS-based MRD assays.
• Perform bioinformatics analyses to support assay development, analytical validation, and performance characterization studies.
• Analyze and interpret complex genomic datasets and communicate findings to project teams.
• Develop and maintain reproducible analysis workflows and scripts for assay development activities.
• Support evaluation of assay performance metrics, including sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, reproducibility, and quality control metrics.
• Participate in benchmarking studies to evaluate and compare bioinformatics methods and analytical approaches.

Experimental Design & Scientific Problem Solving

• Collaborate with wet-lab scientists to design experiments, analyze results, and drive data-informed decisions.
• Apply critical thinking and scientific reasoning to investigate assay performance, troubleshoot challenges, and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Contribute to the development of novel computational approaches and analytical methods as needed.
• Document analyses, methods, and study results in a clear and reproducible manner.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with assay development, molecular biology, software engineering, biostatistics, clinical, and quality teams to support program objectives.
• Participate in design reviews, technical discussions, and project planning activities.
• Help translate biological and technical questions into computational analyses and actionable recommendations.
• Communicate results effectively to both computational and non-computational audiences.

Quality & Documentation

• Follow established quality systems and development processes for regulated diagnostic assay development.
• Contribute to study documentation, development reports, validation summaries, and technical records.
• Support preparation of materials for regulatory submissions, audits, and design-control activities as appropriate.

Who You Are:

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Genomics, Biomedical Engineering, Biostatistics, Computer Science, or a related quantitative field.
• Recent Ph.D. graduate and 2+ years of postdoctoral and/or industry experience or M.Sc and 5+ years of experience.
• Strong understanding of molecular biology, genetics, and next-generation sequencing technologies.
• Experience analyzing NGS data and developing computational workflows using Python and/or R.
• Demonstrated ability to independently analyze complex datasets and draw scientifically sound conclusions.
• Strong critical thinking, quantitative reasoning, and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work effectively in a highly collaborative, cross-functional environment.
• Demonstrated scientific curiosity, initiative, and attention to detail.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting development of NGS-based research or diagnostic assays.
• Familiarity with cancer genomics, somatic variant analysis, and liquid biopsy applications.
• Experience working with cell-free DNA (cfDNA) or circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) datasets.
• Knowledge of bioinformatics best practices, reproducible research methods, and software version control tools.
• Experience with cloud computing environments (AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure).
• Exposure to regulated product development environments, including CAP/CLIA, FDA, or IVD development processes.
• Experience collaborating closely with both laboratory and computational scientists.

What Success Looks Like

• Demonstrates strong scientific judgment and analytical rigor.
• Develops a deep understanding of assay biology, experimental design, and data interpretation.
• Contributes high-quality analyses that inform key development decisions.
• Builds effective partnerships across wet-lab and computational teams.
• Continuously learns new technologies, methods, and scientific domains.
• Grows toward increasing technical ownership and leadership within assay development programs.

Salary Information

For candidates based in our San Diego office, the range is $134,000 - $166,000. For candidates based in our South San Francisco office, the range is $152,000 - $170,000. For candidates working remote (US), the range is $122,000 - $158,000. The final salary offered to a successful candidate will be dependent on several factors that may include but are not limited to years of experience, skillset, geographic location, industry, education, etc.