Senior Data Scientist

Department

BSD MED - Genetic Medicine - Blekhman Research Staff

About the Department

The Section of Genetic Medicine continues to shape the future of personalized medicine with successful research programs focused on the quantitative genetic and genomic science. The Section provides extremely valuable collaborations with investigators in the Department of Medicine who are seeking to develop new and more powerful ways to identify genetic risk factors for common, complex disorders with almost immediate clinical application.

Job Summary

The Blekhman Lab at the University of Chicago is looking for a Senior Data Scientist to lead and direct computational genomics projects. The position is aimed towards a senior, PhD-level scientist with strong quantitative expertise. This senior computational scientist position offers an exciting opportunity to lead bioinformatics initiatives in a dynamic academic research environment focused on cutting-edge genomics. The successful candidate will spearhead computational projects from conception to publication, develop innovative analytical methods for genomic data analysis, and provide essential technical leadership across the lab's research portfolio. Working directly with the principal investigator and guiding lab members, you will build and optimize bioinformatic pipelines, contribute to grant proposals and manuscripts, and manage the lab's computational infrastructure. This role is ideal for a collaborative computational biologist who thrives at the intersection of genomics, data science, and mentorship, with the ability to translate complex biological questions into effective computational solutions while advancing the lab's research impact in the field.

Responsibilities

• Lead computational genomics projects from conception to completion, including study design, data generation, analysis, collaboration management, results presentation, and manuscript preparation.

• Analyze genomic data using various bioinformatic tools and pipelines, and customize existing approaches based on project needs, including building standardized computational pipelines and code for data processing.

• Lead, coordinate, and contribute to grant writing efforts related to computational research projects.

• Design and apply innovative analytical methods for genomic data analysis.

• Work closely with the principal investigator, lab members, collaborators, administrators, and service providers to facilitate all levels of scientific research in the lab.

• Provide bioinformatics mentorship and technical support to lab members, including troubleshooting, code optimization, and workflow improvement.

• Create and maintain open-source software and databases, actively engaging with the wider scientific community.

• Contribute to writing and editing of scientific research papers.

• Develop and document of high-performance computing protocols and resources.

• Manage the lab's computational infrastructure, including storage, licensing, and system maintenance.

• Onboard new team members into the lab's digital collaboration platforms and workflows.

• Directly supervise bioinformatics staff.

• Has a deep understanding of methods to analyze complex data sets for the purpose of extracting and purposefully using applicable information. May develop and maintain infrastructure that connects data sets.

• Guides staff or faculty members in defining the project and applies principals of data science in manipulation, statistical applications, programming, analysis and modeling.

• Performs other related work as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.

Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Education:

• Advanced degree in Biology, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Genetics, Genomics, Microbiology, Computer Science, or a related field.

Experience:

• Experience with analysis of genomic data using bioinformatics and statistical tools.

• Supervisory experience.

• Experience in project management.

Preferred Competencies

• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage and lead projects, set priorities and meet deadlines.

• Strong communication, presentation, and writing skills.