Senior Data Scientist

Location: Hybrid – Seattle, WA
Salary: $10,416 – $11,000 per month
Benefits: Health, Dental, Vision, Retirement, and more. For a complete list, please see our benefits website: https://hr.uw.edu/benefits/

POSITION PURPOSE
The eScience Institute has an outstanding opportunity for a researcher with strengths in data-intensive methods to join our team as a Data Scientist (Research Scientist – Sr.). As a member of our core research team, you will participate in expanding campus-wide opportunities at the intersection of data science and applied areas such as the arts, engineering, humanities and sciences through collaborative research, consultation, community building, and educational activities. You will also have the opportunity to explore your own independent research agenda in your preferred area of study through the use of data, data-intensive methods, and computation. The eScience Institute empowers researchers and students in all fields across the University of Washington to answer fundamental and transformative questions. As the hub of data-intensive discovery on campus, we lead a community of innovators in the techniques, technologies, and best practices of data science.

Data Scientist roles in the eScience Institute are full time, permanent (not term-limited), appointments where you can build a career with advancement opportunities and a rich set of professional development and mentorships opportunities.

The values of diversity, equity, and inclusion are integral to the success of our research enterprise and are embedded in the culture of who are area as an institution and employer. The eScience Institute shares President Cauce's commitment to combat inequities in higher education and research.

In this role, the Data Scientist will both plan and execute data science research, translate research results into solutions and produce practical applications that will deliver lasting impact across domains. Data Scientists are expected to teach data science skills and methods through office hours, technical workshops, tutorials, and Incubator projects. Research projects will be sourced through joint collaborations with eScience faculty and other researchers, and through the independent research goals of the applicant. Working as part of an existing team, successful candidates will have ample opportunity to publish their research, pursue external funding with collaborators across disciplines, and contribute to collaborative software development, innovative technical consulting, development and delivery of training, and other activities designed to advance the research and practice of data-driven and data-intensive discovery across fields. Successful candidates will have demonstrable experience in one or more applications of data science techniques and technologies – e.g. databases and data management technologies, machine learning and modern statistical methods, or data presentation and visualization.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Independent research
Contribute to significant open source software projects using appropriate technologies in large-scale data management, machine learning and statistics, interactive visualization, specialized data presentation interfaces, and/or other data science techniques.
Produce research products such as well-documented algorithms and code, software, and research publications.
Contribute to the Institute research program by seeking grants from both traditional agencies and novel channels to develop analytical and computational tools.
Serve as the principal investigator (PI) or Co-PI on the projects funded by grants.
May supervise and train a student Research Assistant to assist with projects.
Work to release open source software and open data, help ensure scientific reproducibility of all results, and contribute to a “culture of reproducibility” across campus.
Review and evaluate potential projects for technical merit and feasibility.
Organize and conduct workshops and training events in data science techniques and technologies for diverse target audiences.
Meet with potential collaborators to clarify goals, identify collaboration opportunities and recommend solutions.
Advance a reputation outside of UW for excellence in data science methods and practice, contributing to the Institute’s overall portfolio of successful projects and programs.
Foster and build research collaborations with other researchers at UW.

Organizational service
Participate in Institute sponsor reporting and annual retreat activities.
Prepare and deliver presentations on significant results, both internally and externally, representing the eScience Institute as well as specific projects.
Develop web materials communicating significant results, best practices and case studies with specific technologies, and documentation for significant software.
Participate in core team meetings and activities
Serve on standing and/or ad hoc teams such as hiring committees, equity team, etc.
Foster and build research collaborations with other researchers at UW
Participate as needed and interest arises in other core programs of the Institute, such as the Data Science Incubator, Software Carpentry, Hack Weeks, etc.
Hold open office hours for students, faculty, staff and post-docs

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
PhD or equivalent in any discipline, with a strong computational background.
A minimum of 6 years of experience in programming and software engineering and/or advanced statistical methods including experience:
- Applying one or more programming languages to construct full scientific pipelines, from data ingestion / clean-up to modeling, to visualization and analysis.
- Collaborating and coordinating work via an online platform, such as GitHub, GitLab, or BitBucket, and distributed revision control.

Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Skills to communicate complex information in a clear and concise manner both verbally and in writing.
Strong capacity for teamwork, collaborative, critical thinking, and attention to detail.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
A successful research track record, especially through collaborations outside one’s own field, as evidenced by joint publications, joint grants, and collaborative software outputs.
Previous experience in the University of Washington College of Engineering.
Leadership in collaborative projects in open source software development.
Experience engaging with highly technical researchers across a variety of methodological fields, research domains, and computational platforms.
Experience with seeking extramural funding to support research, education and training programs.