Long time slashdot reader, first time poster. Being a computational biologist myself, I'd say that if you're in the market for a job in in academia, people look at your publication record and impact and all that, but also tend to be swayed by where your work is published (first perhaps), then who your advisor is, and then perhaps your department. Having participated in a number of faculty searches, the home department is important, but things can really play either way depending on the other criteria: "This candidate is so impressive, he published these papers with interesting CS results even though he was in a Biology department" or "This candidate is a great biologist and he has great papers in Nature/PNAS - but come on he's hardly a computer scientist". The bottom line is that the subjective part of your application materials (your letters of reference, and your research statement, for example) need to have a cohesive story about what you might consider your home discipline(s).
I'm actually on the opposite side of the coin: I'm looking for a postdoc with your type of expertise (get in touch with me!) and I'm looking very broadly. I'd love to work with someone with complementary skills, and I'd wager that in the right circumstances that is often the most effective hire to make. Good luck!
Slashdot Mirror
Long time slashdot reader, first time poster. Being a computational biologist myself, I'd say that if you're in the market for a job in in academia, people look at your publication record and impact and all that, but also tend to be swayed by where your work is published (first perhaps), then who your advisor is, and then perhaps your department. Having participated in a number of faculty searches, the home department is important, but things can really play either way depending on the other criteria: "This candidate is so impressive, he published these papers with interesting CS results even though he was in a Biology department" or "This candidate is a great biologist and he has great papers in Nature/PNAS - but come on he's hardly a computer scientist". The bottom line is that the subjective part of your application materials (your letters of reference, and your research statement, for example) need to have a cohesive story about what you might consider your home discipline(s). I'm actually on the opposite side of the coin: I'm looking for a postdoc with your type of expertise (get in touch with me!) and I'm looking very broadly. I'd love to work with someone with complementary skills, and I'd wager that in the right circumstances that is often the most effective hire to make. Good luck!