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The Faculty of Medicine of Justus Liebig University Giessen (JLU) and the University Hospital Giessen and Marburg GmbH (UKGM), Giessen Campus, invite applications for a

W1 Professorship (with W2 tenure track) in AI-Based Morphomolecular Precision Medicine

The position is offered with the earliest possible starting date for a period of six years pursuant to § 70 Para. 3 and 4 Hessian Higher Education Act (HessHG). According to § 70 Para. 3 HessHG, applicants (m/f/d) should have gained a doctoral degree at an institution of higher education other than JLU or have been in academic employment at an institution other than JLU for at least two years after conferral of a doctoral degree. The duration of applicants- scientific activity during and after completion of the doctoral degree should not exceed nine years or the duration of activity after the doctorate should not exceed four years. In the case of successful completion of the six-year W1 position, which is to be assessed in an evaluation procedure pursuant to § 70 Para. 2 HessHG, the appointment will be converted into a permanent W2 professorship. Proficient knowledge of German is expected.

Duties:

Your task is to comprehensively represent AI-supported morphomolecular precision medicine in the areas of research, teaching and patient care.

The professorship is expected to enhance the biological/pathophysiological understanding of tumors in neuro-oncology and to make precision diagnostics better and more (cost-)efficient by means of AI-supported integration of molecular data (Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), particularly DNA methylation data) and morphological big data (histology), in combination with clinical metadata. Additionally, the development of predictive models in the field of personalized medicine is expected. By establishing general AI-based morphomolecular modeling approaches, you are also expected to contribute to further research areas within JLU. Moreover, the acquisition and leadership of a new – or the continuation of an existing – externally funded junior research group is expected.

The position also involves the development and maintenance of processing and analysis pipelines for whole-slide images (WSI), DNA methylation microarrays, and NGS analysis. Furthermore, you will be responsible for administering and further expanding the server and client infrastructure at the JLU-s Institute of Neuropathology.

The clinical focus of your work lies in the implementation and further development of molecular neuro-oncological diagnostics. All tasks associated with the professorship in patient care are regulated by the UKGM.

You should actively participate in existing research networks, independently acquire research projects (preferably from the DFG, the BMBF and/or the EU), and participate in DFG joint projects as well as in further national and international networks. Your research to date is compatible with existing collaborative research projects at JLU, in particular the “MIRACUM- consortium funded by the BMBF as part of the Medical Informatics Initiative and the “Cardio-Pulmonary Institute- (CPI) Cluster of Excellence. Your collaboration in one of the faculty-s accent areas – preferably “Translational oncology- or “e-Health- – as well as in the JLU-s focus area “Cardiopulmonary system (Heart/Lungs)- is desired.

Your cooperation in established structures for the promotion of young scientists and clinicians, such as the Giessen Graduate Centre for the Life Sciences (GGL), the structured doctoral programme (JLU TRAINEE), and the clinician scientist programme (JLU CAREER) is expected.

In addition, you are expected to strengthen the cross-faculty and cross-university University Center for BioMedical Informatics in the areas of bioinformatics, medical informatics, and computational modeling, as well as the JLU-s Center for Applied Computing and Data Science, and to support the Hessian Center for Artificial Intelligence (hessian.AI).

You are also expected to teach courses amounting to 4 semester hours per week during the qualification phase. You will be involved in teaching content in the fields of neuropathology, morphology and medical informatics. Your work will focus particularly on the development of interdisciplinary courses on (bio)medical informatics/AI and neuropathological or medical concepts.

The integration of gender aspects in research and teaching is explicitly desired.

The universities of Giessen and Marburg and the University of Applied Sciences in Central Hessen are working together in a research alliance (Research Campus of Central Hessen) as a structured cooperation based on coordinated priorities. It is expected that the applicant shows cooperativeness to university and department-wide collaborative projects. In particular, cross university/hospital patient-oriented clinical research and the participation in joint clinical studies is expected.

Requirements:

Prerequisites for the position include a successfully completed university education in bioinformatics and the ability to scientific work for the fulfilment of the tasks according to § 67 Para. 1 HessHG, usually proven by an outstanding doctorate. Internationally visible, subject-specific publications are also required. Furthermore, initial teaching experience and proof of exceptional pedagogic aptitude are required to ensure strong engagement in academic instruction within the relevant discipline. Experience in leading a junior research group, as well as initial experience in acquiring external funding, is desirable.

You should be internationally recognized in the above-mentioned research field. In addition, you should have extensive experience in the scientific application of AI and in-depth knowledge of molecular medicine, particularly in computational neuropathology and neuro-oncology. These qualifications should be demonstrated through experience in the generation and integrative analysis of diagnostic high-throughput sequencing data (NGS data) and morphological big data (whole-slide images) of brain tumors. Proficiency in at least one programming language (e.g., Perl, Python, or R), as well as in the development of analysis pipelines and distributed analysis, is also required.

In case the candidate exceeds the basic age limit of 50 years, a civil servant appointment under § 66 Para. 3 sentences 2 and 3 Hessian Higher Education Act (HessHG) in conjunction with § 11 Hessian Career Regulation (HLVO) requires a specific functional interest.

The JLU aims to employ more women in academic research. We therefore particularly encourage female candidates to apply. JLU also pursues the goal at faculty leadership level of increased competence in dealing with gender and family-related issues. JLU is regarded as a family-friendly university. Applicants with children are very welcome. Applications from disabled people of equal aptitude will be given preference.

We strongly recommend candidates to refer to our on application procedures. Applicants are encouraged additionally to fill in one of the (Bewerbungsbogen – application form).

Please send your application with the required documents via to the President of Justus Liebig University Giessen by June 27^th, 2025, quoting the reference number K-07/25.