Join the team
Before considering to apply for a position at the IRB, you are encouraged to read the following advice:
Having an outstanding CV is a very good start but is not sufficient to be short listed for an interview, and is definitely not enough per se to get the position your are applying for. Your motivation and career plan are crucial and will be of high impact on the success of your application.
In your motivation letter, which has to be written in English, you need to clearly demonstrate why you want to join the IRB and this group of research in particular. Your application should also contain the e-mail addresses of at least two referees.
If you intend to join the IRB, you should wonder not only what the Institute will bring to you but also what You will bring to the Institute. We ask you not only to be self-critical but also to be scientifically critical with your future team. The Institute is looking for good Scientists not for tasks executors.
Working efficiently is more expected than working hard, even if one does not exclude the other and vice versa.
If finally you have the chance to be short listed for an interview, please prepare it. Look all over our website to know the environment surrounding the research group you are applying to, read their last publications, current projects and research networks; study the core facilities available at the Institute. Even if in the job advertisement you have only a few sentences describing your future project, start to think about it, how you would approach it.
In short, applying at the IRB should not be one of the X applications you are writing and sending. Instead, it should be thoroughly prepared.
For applications to the IRB PhD Program there is no official deadline: please contact directly the head of the laboratory you would be interested in, explaining exactly why you are interested specifically in that research and in general in obtaining a PhD. Send a complete CV and names of referees.
IRB supports scientists impacted by the war
The IRB stands in sympathy with all those scientists and their families, who are touched by war. In particular, we are supportive of the academics from Ukraine as well as of those from Russia, who speak out against the Ukrainian conflict. If you are a PhD student, postdoc or more senior scientist, who are impacted by the war and working on topics related to the Institute’s research, we encourage you to contact us to inquire for possibilities to be temporarily hosted at the IRB.
Civil Service
The position of research assistant at one of the groups of the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB) allows the civilist to be able to actively assist PhD Students and Postdocs in a variety of research projects. The tasks performed by the civilist and the degree of autonomy depend mainly on his or her educational qualification and experience gathered so far. These may involve simple standard basic procedures such as cell culture maintenance, PCR or reagent preparation or the use of more complex machines and techniques such as flow cytometry.
RESPECT
The IRB aims at creating a vibrant, collaborative and inclusive environment, where people safely and freely engage in scientific discussions and discovery. To achieve this goal, interactions among all members of the IRB community should be based at all times on mutual respect. The IRB will not tolerate any inappropriate behavior that offends personal integrity, personal dignity and hinders equal opportunities. Harassment, bullying, discrimination, threatening behaviors and violence are all unacceptable at all levels of employment and the person committing the acts will face consequences, regardless of the status or position. Retaliation against people acting in good faith will also be not tolerated.
If you experience inappropriate behavior at any time, please report it. For more information, please consult your supervisor or HR. The IRB is there for you and will support you.
Open positions
There are currently no job vacancies. Please check the website at a later date for any future vacancies.
What makes a good antibody? A multidisciplinary approach
Our group strives to understand the molecular properties allowing a given antibody to effectively neutralize a human pathogen. We then use this information to engineer new antibodies for immunotherapy or antigens for vaccination strategy or diagnostic.
To perform this research, we, the Varani group, use a highly multidisciplinary approach varying from structural to cellular and molecular biology, computational simulations, biophysical and infectivity assays, confocal microscopy and virtually any technique that is required to answer biomedical questions. As a PhD student you will be exposed to all these.
In recent years, we enjoyed high impact works on Zika (Cell), Prion (Plos Path.), SARS-CoV-2 (Nature) and more. We developed the first human bispecific against COVID-19, now headed for clinical trial.
Institute for Research in Biomedicine
The IRB occupies a brand new, modern building in Bellinzona, Ticino, Switzerland. It is a world-renowned research institute with very high impact publications from all its groups and state of the art facilities.
The IRB doctoral (PhD) program at the IRB enjoys high-caliber speakers from all over the world, allowing students enrolled at Swiss universities to carry out their thesis.
Joint activities with the hosted oncology research institute (IOR) complete the offering.
Your Profile
Candidates should have a Master degree related to life sciences, with hands on laboratory experience (biochemistry, physics, molecular biology) and be comfortable with English. Knowledge in protein expression and purification, and in biochemical and molecular biology methods, is required; hands-on experience in these fields, as programming skills are a big plus. Flexibility and ability to adapt to new challenges is required.
If interested, send your applications including CV, a letter of motivation, reference letters and/or name and contacts of two referees to: luca.varani@irb.usi.ch
Facebook / Twitter