PhD Researcher - UX/UI & Data Visualization

Do you have a passion for user experience design, human–computer interaction, and data visualization? Are you motivated to work on complex, real-world problems where design, technology, and healthcare intersect?

If you are driven by curiosity and purpose, join SOPHiA GENETICS as a PhD Researcher in UX/UI and Data Visualization, and help shape how clinical geneticists explore, filter, and interpret complex genomic data, ultimately improving outcomes for cancer and rare disease patients worldwide.

This PhD position will be based in Bidart, France, with close collaboration across SOPHiA GENETICS’ Product, Data Science, Tech, and Clinical teams. The successful candidate will also collaborate and spend time at our academic partners, the Engineering Faculty of Mondragon University and ESTIA. The weekly schedule will be defined collaboratively.

Our Mission

We believe there is a smarter, more data-driven way to make decisions in healthcare. Our cloud-native, AI-powered SOPHiA DDM™ Platform enables clinicians and researchers to transform complex genomic data into actionable insights.

Through this PhD, you will directly contribute to our mission by advancing human-centered design approaches that make complex genomic data more intuitive, accessible, and scalable for real clinical workflows.

Your Mission

As a PhD Researcher in UX/UI & Data Visualization, you will research, design, and evaluate adaptive interfaces for filtering, visualizing, and exploring large-scale genomic variant data. Your work will bridge human–computer interaction (HCI), data visualization, cognitive science, and clinical genomics, combining academic rigor with real-world platform constraints.

You will collaborate closely with UX designers, engineers, data scientists, and clinical experts to prototype, test, and validate new interaction paradigms that scale from simple to advanced use cases while maintaining usability, performance, and clinical relevance.

Develop Adaptive Filtering Interfaces

• Evaluate existing progressive disclosure mechanisms for filter complexity (from quick filters to cascade filters to decision-tree or network-based models)

• Apply behavioral design principles (cognitive processes, decision-making, and emotional responses to how information is presented in the interface) with the aim of optimising user experience, trust, and decision confidence

• Design, create and develop low fidelity intuitive visual representations of filter logic, dependencies, and cumulative effects

• Explore different ways to write different queries, smart filters and/or natural language inputs

• Design multi-modal filter input methods, combining visual builders, quick filters, and natural language

• Evaluate with users in-situ the various propositions and identify the right one

Design Multi-Dimensional Data Visualizations

• Explore WebGL / Three.js capabilities for 2D and 3D genomic data visualization

• Develop interactive visualizations for variant relationships, pathways, and networks

• Create funnel visualizations that clearly communicate cascade filtering workflows

• Design spatial representations of genomic coordinates and structural data

Optimize User Experience for Large-Scale Data

• Design interaction patterns that remain responsive for large-scale genomic datasets

• Optimize feedback mechanisms, loading states, and perceived performance during complex filtering operations

• Balance data completeness, performance, and cognitive load to support efficient clinical decision-making

While the PhD topic is defined at a high level, the successful candidate will actively contribute to refining and shaping it in partnership with SOPHiA GENETICS, ESTIA, and Mondragon University.

Requirements:
• PhD candidate in HCI, UX/UI Design, Computer Science, Data Visualization, Cognitive Science, or a related field

• Strong interest in human-centered design, interaction design, and complex data visualization

• Experience with prototyping tools and/or front-end technologies (e.g. Figma, web technologies, D3.js, Three.js, or similar)

• Familiarity with qualitative and quantitative user research methods (interviews, usability testing, experiments)

• Ability to work across disciplines and communicate effectively with both technical and non-technical stakeholders

• Interest in healthcare, life sciences, or clinical applications is a strong plus

• Fluency in English is required; proficiency in French and/or Basque (Euskara) is a strong plus.

Benefits:
You will benefit from:

• Fixed term contract (contrat à durée déterminée) with SOPHiA GENETICS
• Enrollment in the Doctoral School Mathematics and Computer Science of Bordeaux University through the ESTIA-Recherche lab
• Collaboration with the Innovation in Industrial Design / Diseinu Berrikuntza Zentroa (DBZ) Department of Mondragon Unibertsitatea
• Close collaboration with SOPHiA GENETICS’ Product, Data Science, Tech, and Clinical teams
• A stimulating research environment combining academic depth and applied innovation

You will be joining an organization with the patient at the heart of every decision and action, driven by purpose as we pursue exponential growth.

Business recognition and accolades include:

• World's most innovative companies (Top 10)
• World's smartest companies (Top 50)
• 100 Best Places to Work in Boston
• Top 10 European Tech Startup
• Top 10 European biotechs startup to watch
• Top 25 East-Coast Biotech to watch

Our benefits package is comprehensive, but varies internationally in-line with local standards and laws. You can discuss a full breakdown with us, but as a brief overview:

• Meal Vouchers
• A fun and engaging work environment, with Rest & Entertainment space, full stocked free coffee machine and free fruit/snacks
• Free parking in an easy to access location
• A strong social committee whose purpose is to make SOPHiA GENETICs both enjoyable as well as rewarding

Our DNA

Like the strands of DNA itself, SOPHiA GENETICS and the team are deeply interconnected and reliant on each other to deliver. There are common threads across the team. Things that bind us together. Those things are Relentless Curious; Resilient & Nimble and Fearlessly Adventurous

Our Virtues

At SOPHiA GENETICS we established our 7 Virtues to clarify how our principles show up each day through action. We Decide; We Do; We Collaborate; We Innovate; We Empower; We Adapt and We Learn.

At the centre of our Virtues is our Mantra, We Care, which provides a constant reminder of the compassionate, benevolent, and hopeful nature of our mission and how it should be threaded through each of our Virtues and everything we do. Learn more about our DNA and Virtues on our Careers portal

The Process

We use the power of AI to help our partners make decisions. If you’re utilising AI in your search and application process, why not use some of these prompts, or read our AI guide.

‘What impact can I expect to have on the world by working at SOPHiA GENETICS?’

‘I have an interview with SOPHiA GENETICS. What should I know before I meet with them?’

Apply now with your CV and any supporting information.

Suitably qualified candidates will be invited through an interview and screening process where you will speak with members of our Talent Acquisition Team, the hiring leader alongside key colleagues and stakeholders from across the business. If you need additional support for accessibility, please contact our TA team for assistance.

We appreciate the value external partners can bring, but we operate a direct-hiring model and we are not looking to utilize agency support at this time. All hiring is controlled by Talent Acquisition, potential partners should liaise through TA and not our hiring teams please.

Starting Date: 2026

Location: Bidart, Nouvelle-Aquitaine (France)

Contract: Temporary- PhD position