European Bioinformatics Institute Reviews

Winning grants and publishing glowing papers are the only things group leaders are measured on. This means the delivery of services is often a secondary concern. Many projects run out of steam after 1-2 years and are slowly left to die as the PI chases the next thing. Many leaders, especially those who have been at EBI for over 9 years, have never worked outside of campus after university which means they live in a bubble inside the bubble of Cambridge. This gives a very limited world view. As a result, mentoring and promotion is often limited to "people like me" who have a very similar background. Software developers are recruited at two grades 5 (junior) and 6 (senior). Higher grades are people and project management roles and nearly always require a scientific background. Grade at joining is often more to do with the budget of the project at hiring time rather than competency. Once recruited into a grade it is very hard to progress. Salaries and grades are out of line with other EMBL sites and do not take into account the high cost of accommodation in Cambridge. For example, an average software developer at EBI would expect to pay 35%+ of their salary on the rental of a modest apartment. In Heidelberg, this is more like 15% due to the difference in grading, exchange rates and cost of living. Training and development is limited as EMBL is set up for PhD scientists with all the skills they need rather than software where skills change all the time. Like many things, this seems mainly to be due to the centralised policy at Heidelberg rather than anything EBI management can control. This does mean that as a developer unless you have time to invest in your own skills development you are likely to see your skills rot during your time at EBI and may cause problems when your contract comes to an end.

Career opportunities both within and after EBI are very limited. Normally you have to live after maximum of 9 years. For career and personal development sake, it is best to leave after 3 years but most people (like myself) take safe option to stay full 9 years, within whichI have progressed from a database curator to, well, senior database curator. This is a ridiculous job title and prospects finding a similar job which will pay at least on the same level are close to zero. There is a small (but, naturally, growing) number of people who are given rolling contracts. To justify that, the new group and team leader positions are constantly invented for no other good reason. The communication between different groups is very poor. The special international status of EMBL is a big problem for non-EU staff members. Normally, if you spend 4 years continuously working in the UK you are eligible for residency (indefinite leave to stay in the UK). However the time you work for the EBI does not count toward it and moreover, if you were previously employed in the UK for less than 4 years, you will have to start from zero after your gig at the EBI. Provided that you find a job in the UK, that is. So there is a real chance that after 9 years at the EBI (legally working in the UK!) you still will be forced to leave the country.