Main Purpose of the Job

The post holder will be responsible for the deployment, maintenance, and technical integration of Galaxy as a core component of the BioFAIR Methods Commons (MC).

BioFAIR is a UK federated digital research infrastructure designed to connect existing services, communities, and expertise to build a cohesive national ecosystem for Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reproducible (FAIR) data. As one of the BioFAIR Spokes, the MC will provide access to trusted and robust analysis platforms, workflows, and tools to UK life scientists. Within this ecosystem, Galaxy serves as an open-source, web-based platform that makes complex computational research accessible, reproducible, and transparent.

Based within the Data Science group at the Earlham Institute (EI), this role operates as part of the Service Delivery and DevOps team within the larger BioFAIR MC team across EI, the University of Manchester, and Seqera. The post holder will focus on Galaxy application service delivery, custom software and API development, and the seamless integration of Galaxy with other MC subsystems to build, run, and support a cohesive, world-class national service deployed on the AWS public cloud.

Key Relationships

Internal: BioFAIR MC team; Data Science group; NBI Research computing; and other researchers at the Earlham Institute.
External: BioFAIR Hub and Spoke partners (including the University of Manchester and Seqera); academic research organisations; and the global Galaxy community.

Main Activities & Responsibilities

Percentage

Configure, deploy, document, and maintain the production-grade national UK Galaxy service instance on the AWS cloud platform.

40

Design, write, document, and maintain software code and APIs to enhance Galaxy capabilities and integrate with the other BioFAIR Methods Commons services and BioFAIR Spokes.

35

Establish and manage automated testing, continuous integration, and continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines for Galaxy releases, configuration changes, and integration code. Set up application-level monitoring, logging, and alerting systems to ensure high availability and generate usage statistics.

15

Engage actively with the global Galaxy community to share best practices, upstream bug fixes, and contribute to collaborative open-source developments.

10

As agreed with the line manager, any other duties commensurate with the role.

Education & Qualifications

Requirement

Importance

A degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Bioinformatics, or a related quantitative field, or equivalent professional experience.

Essential

Professional certifications in DevOps or system administration.

Desirable

Specialist Knowledge & Skills

Requirement

Importance

Strong proficiency in Linux systems administration and shell scripting (e.g. Bash).

Essential

Command of modern programming languages and frameworks, with a focus on Python and Vue.js.

Essential

Proficiency in Git-based version control and collaboration workflows.

Essential

Understanding of RESTful API design and standards-compliant interfaces.

Desirable

Experience using configuration management and Infrastructure-as-Code tools (e.g. Ansible).

Desirable

Familiarity with the Galaxy platform, in particular development and/or administration.

Desirable

Relevant Experience

Requirement

Importance

Proven experience deploying, configuring, and administering web applications or complex multi-user platforms in production environments.

Essential

Experience building and maintaining automated CI/CD pipelines.

Essential

Experience working in a cloud-hosted environment (particularly AWS).

Desirable

Experience contributing to open-source software projects or collaborative codebases.

Desirable

Interpersonal & Communication Skills

Requirement

Importance

Good interpersonal skills, with the ability to work well as part of a distributed team.

Essential

Good written and verbal communication skills.

Essential

Experience communicating technical architectures and API specifications to diverse technical stakeholders.

Desirable

Presentation and documentation skills.

Desirable

Additional Requirements

Requirement

Importance

Attention to detail

Essential

Promotes equality and values diversity

Essential

Ability to maintain confidentiality and security of information where appropriate.

Essential

Able to present a positive image of self and the Institute, promoting both the international reputation and public engagement aims of the Institute.

Essential

Willingness to work outside standard hours as required

Essential

Ability to undertake occasional travel (national and international) related to collaborations and/or seminars.

Desirable

A keen interest in science and technology.

Desirable

Earlham Institute

About the Earlham Institute
The Earlham Institute harnesses the power of data-driven biology to accelerate solutions for health, biodiversity, and food security. Based at Norwich Research Park, the Earlham Institute is one of eight institutes strategically funded by BBSRC.

Our science combines world-class technology, interdisciplinary expertise, and training and development across genomics, engineering biology and data science, to decode the scale and complexity of living systems.

We believe we can achieve more if we work together. That's why we collaborate with the global science community and industry partners, while also inspiring the next generation of scientists and technical specialists.

Our Science
Earlham Institute scientists specialise in developing and testing the latest tools and approaches needed to decode living systems and make biological predictions.

We are home to state-of-the-art facilities and technology, creating a unique combination of expertise and infrastructure.

We have dedicated laboratories for genome sequencing, single-cell analysis, engineering biology, and large-scale automation; as well as one of the largest supercomputing facilities for life science research in Europe.

Our Advanced Training team also provides access to specialised scientific training to upskill the next generation of research and technical staff.

Our Culture
Our collegiate and innovative research environment comes with significant support, including a commitment to your professional development, research and administrative assistance, and opportunities to build collaborations with scientists and industry on the Norwich Research Park, across the UK, and internationally.

We are committed to building and maintaining a workplace that treats every individual with dignity and respect. By taking an active approach to fostering inclusivity, diversity, equality and accessibility, we empower our community to achieve more.

The Institute is also home to talented technical and operational staff, whose invaluable contributions enable our science to have the maximum impact. We aim to recognise, reward, and develop all staff and students so that every individual feels able to achieve their best with us.

We work hard to nurture an engaged and positive workplace, centred on core values that include openness, technical excellence, and collaboration. We attract staff from around the world who contribute to - and benefit from - an environment that enables them to deliver world-class science alongside a supportive and social community.

For more information about working at the Earlham Institute, please click here.

Further Information:

• Our Vision and Mission
• Our Strategy
• Our Culture
• Life at Earlham Institute

Department

Research Faculty

Living in Norfolk

• Visit Norfolk
• Schools in Norfolk
• Childcare in Norfolk

DevOps Engineer (BioFAIR Methods Commons)

Applications are invited for a DevOps Engineer (BioFAIR Methods Commons) to join the Data Science Group in the Research Faculty of the Earlham Institute, based in Norwich, UK.

Background:

BioFAIR is a UK federated digital research infrastructure designed to connect existing services, communities, and expertise to build a cohesive national ecosystem for Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reproducible (FAIR) data. As one of the BioFAIR Spokes, the Methods Commons will provide access to trusted and robust analysis platforms, workflows, and tools to UK life scientists. Within this ecosystem, Galaxy serves as an open-source, web-based platform that makes complex computational research accessible, reproducible, and transparent.

The role:

The DevOps Engineer will work on deploying, maintaining and integrating the production-grade national UK Galaxy service on AWS as part of the BioFAIR Methods Commons project. In this role, you will develop skills in public cloud architecture, automated CI/CD pipelines, custom RESTful API development, and production service observability.

The ideal candidate:

Candidates should have a degree (BSc/MSc) or equivalent professional experience in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Bioinformatics, or a related quantitative field, with previous experience deploying and administering web applications or complex multi-user platforms in production environments. Good communication, teamworking, and organisation skills with the ability to work independently are also required.

Additional information:

This is a full-time post for a contract of 2 years.

Salary on appointment will be within the range £47,450 to £52,560 per annum, depending on qualifications and experience.

This role does not meet the full salary requirements set by UKVI to allow for visa sponsorship.  However, some individuals may still be eligible for visa sponsorship depending on their personal circumstances.  If you require visa sponsorship, please click here to find out if you qualify before applying. Please note, the occupation code for this role is 2134, which is not on the immigration salary list. Please contact the Human Resources Team if you have any questions regarding your application or visa options

As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to offer an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for this vacancy.

The closing date for applications will be 22 September 2026.