Position available

Lab Manager / Research Professional

Oeffinger Lab · Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), affiliated with the Université de Montréal

The lab

The Oeffinger laboratory studies the architecture, composition and functional niches of heterogeneous ribonucleoprotein complexes (RNPs) such as ribosomes and mRNPs — how their assembly and function are regulated, and how RNA-binding proteins and their associated RNA species are coordinated.

We combine single-step affinity purification–mass spectrometry (ssAP-MS), crosslinking-MS and DIA proteomics with RNomics, biochemical, cell biological and computational approaches, to build a dynamic picture of RNP regulation and function across cellular contexts and organisms — S. cerevisiae and human cells.

We are a small, collaborative group at the IRCM in Montreal, with in-house core facilities for proteomics, microscopy, genomics, flow cytometry and bioinformatics.

Language. The lab works in English — meetings, protocols, records and manuscripts. The IRCM is bilingual, and institute life runs in both French and English. French is useful in dealings with suppliers and institute administration, and some documentation exists only in French, but it is not a requirement: colleagues help with what arrives in French, and no part of this role depends on your having it.

The position

This is a genuinely split role. Roughly half of it is keeping the lab running well; the other half is bench science, with real intellectual ownership and authorship on the work you contribute to. It suits someone who wants both — who finds satisfaction in a well-organised lab and wants to stay at the bench.

Lab management (~50%)

• Ordering, receiving and supplier relations; tracking budgets and reconciling expenses with institute finance
• Maintaining stocks and databases: reagents, plasmids, strains, cell lines, antibodies
• Equipment upkeep, service contracts, and liaison with the IRCM core facilities
• Biosafety and chemical safety compliance; keeping documentation current and audit-ready
• Onboarding and training new students and postdocs; maintaining lab protocols and the protocol handbook
• General organisation of shared spaces and lab logistics

Research (~50%)

• Independent bench work on one of the lab’s active RNP projects
• Affinity purification (ssAP-MS) and sample preparation for mass spectrometry, and analysis of the resulting data
• Generating and validating yeast strains and mammalian cell lines
• Core molecular biology: cloning, CRISPR editing, qPCR, Western blotting, cell culture
• RNA work: extraction, RT-qPCR and library preparation
• Documenting, presenting and writing up results

Who we are looking for

Required

• MSc in molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry or a related field — a BSc with substantial hands-on research experience is equally welcome
• Solid practical experience in mammalian cell culture and core molecular biology
• Demonstrated organisational ability, and the kind of reliability a lab can be built around
• Working English (the lab operates in English)

Assets

• Affinity purification, sample preparation for mass spectrometry, or proteomics data analysis
• Saccharomyces cerevisiae genetics and biochemistry
• RNA methods — RNA handling, RT-qPCR, library preparation
• Previous lab-management, ordering or biosafety experience
• French, for institute administration

How to apply

The IRCM is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion, and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates.

A note on language

The working language of the lab is English. Lab meetings, journal club, protocols, notebooks, manuscripts and theses are all in English. You do not need French to do your research here, and we welcome applicants from anywhere.

The IRCM is bilingual, and day-to-day life in the institute runs in both French and English. For students, where the degree is registered makes little practical difference to the language of the training:

• McGill University operates in English throughout.
• Université de Montréal is a French-language university, but at the graduate level this is far less of an obstacle than it sounds. Most classes are given in English or in both languages, course material is provided in both, examinations may be written in English, and so may your thesis.

Some institutional paperwork exists only in French. We help with it, and nobody is left to work it out alone.

Learning French is not required, and nothing in your training or your work depends on it. If you would like to learn while you are here, there are university and provincial programmes — and it makes life in Montreal considerably richer.