Temporary position OT-30247
Research Engineer / Data Analyst / Bioinformatician
78350 Jouy-en-Josas
INRAE presentation
INRAE is a public research organization bringing together 12,000 employees across 272 units in 18 centers across France. As the world’s leading institute specializing in agriculture, food, and the environment, INRAE plays a key role in supporting the necessary transitions to address global challenges.
Faced with population growth, food security challenges, climate change, resource depletion, and biodiversity loss, INRAE is committed to developing scientific solutions and supporting the evolution of agricultural, food, and environmental practices.
You will conduct your research in the MICALIS unit (UMR INRAE – AgroParisTech - University Paris-Saclay) and MetaGenoPolis unit, both located in Jouy-en-Josas campus (near Versailles/Massy; RER station 800 m away, bus stop in the immediate vicinity). You will be part of the PhylHom team, composed of around ten people.
You will also benefit from the dynamic scientific and social environment of the INRAE campus and Paris-Saclay University.
Work environment, missions and activities
The PhylHom Lab is seeking a Research Engineer to contribute to an interdisciplinary project investigating the impact of the human exposome on the gut microbiome at the territorial scale.
The human gut microbiome is increasingly recognized as a key determinant of health and disease and as a major mediator of interactions between environmental exposures, diet, and host physiology. Building on previous work demonstrating the role of the microbiome in responses to environmental factors, nutrition, and therapeutic interventions, this project aims to integrate large-scale environmental exposure datasets (generated by INERIS) with gut microbiome data from INRAE’s Le French Gut project.
Funded by the French National Health Data Hub, this interdisciplinary project will strengthen collaborations between INRAE (MICALIS Institute and MetaGenoPolis) and INERIS to better understand how environmental exposures from different sources (soil, water, air) impact the human digestive microbiome and, ultimately, health trajectories across the French population.
The Research Engineer will join the team to develop analytical pipelines combining national-scale environmental exposure datasets with microbiome data. This will involve harmonising
heterogeneous datasets, aggregating environmental indicators at appropriate geographical scales (spatial units), developing reproducible analytical pipelines, performing spatial and multivariate statistical analyses, and finally identifying exposome signatures associated with microbiome diversity and function. The project relies on close interactions between microbiologists, bioinformaticians, environmental scientists, and epidemiologists.
Please note that the MICALIS institute is a restricted-access facility (ZRR – Zone à Régime Restrictif). The candidate will need to be approved by the SGDSN (General Secretariat for Defence and National Security).
Training and skills
Candidates should:
• hold a PhD in bioinformatics, computational biology, biostatistics, microbiome sciences, environmental health, data science, or related disciplines;
• possess strong computational skills, including proficiency in R and/or Python;
• have experience in statistical analyses and integration of large, heterogeneous datasets;
• thrive in a multidisciplinary environment;
• have strong oral and written English communication skills.
Experience with microbiome meta-omics would be considered an advantage.
INRAE's life quality
By joining our teams, you benefit from (depending on the type of contract and its duration):
- up to 30 days of annual leave + 15 days "Reduction of Working Time" (for a full time);
- parenting support: CESU childcare, leisure services;
- skills development systems: training, career advise;
- social support: advice and listening, social assistance and loans;
- holiday and leisure services: holiday vouchers, accommodation at preferential rates;
- sports and cultural activities;
- collective catering.
How to apply
The interested candidates should send their application (single PDF file), including a cover letter, a detailed CV (with specific dates of past contracts/experiences), contact information for 2-3 references, and abrief description of previous research projects (< 1 page) by email to: Dr. Patricia Lepage; patricia.lepage@inrae.fr before: September 15, 2026.
All persons employed by or hosted at INRAE, a public research establishment, are subject to the Civil Service Code, particularly with regard to the obligation of neutrality and respect for the principle of secularism. In carrying out their functions, whether or not they are in contact with the public, they must not express their religious, philosophical or political convictions through their behaviour or by what they wear. > Find out more: fonction publique.gouv.fr website (in French)