Computational Scientist Genomic Medicine

The mission of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is to eliminate cancer in Texas, the nation, and the world through outstanding programs that integrate patient care, research, and prevention, and through education for undergraduate and graduate students, trainees, professionals, employees, and the public.

Clinical and research data is growing at an unprecedented rate. However, in order to use the data to make practice changing discoveries, the ability to strategically integrate and analyze this massive data stream is a critical needed. This Computational Scientist position is intended to fulfill this need.

The Computational Scientist candidate will work within MD Anderson's Department of Genomic Medicine focusing on translational research projects within the Department, including Patient Mosaic, and other institutional research efforts led by the Department. The candidate will work closely with Strategic Translational Research Programs leadership to implement cutting-edge big data analytics infrastructure and data interrogation across a variety of platforms using multidimensional data. As part of a multidisciplinary team, the candidate will help drive translational research and ultimately contribute to the development of novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.

The genomic computational scientist will be expected to work creatively and independently, as well as being able to contribute to the team. The candidate will play key roles in collaborations with clinical and translational scientists, lead the efforts of the integration and mining of big data using various mathematical/computational approaches, help develop and oversee the maintenance of novel analysis pipelines and infrastructure for resolving specific problems, and be actively involved in generating reports, presentations, and the preparation of manuscripts.

JOB SPECIFIC COMPETENCIES

• Participate in computational analytics design, data collection, data analysis, results interpretation, and the generation of the appropriate outputs: reports, presentations, and manuscripts, etc.
• Conduct independent work using various mathematical/statistical skillsets, meet with leadership and collaborators to discuss projects and communicate results
• Develop and maintain pipelines to regularly perform standard data analysis routines in an automated way and provide visualization tools to report and explore the results
• Conduct computational analysis of multi-omics across multiple platforms and perform high-dimensional, multi-modal data integration with other data types to derive meaningful insights
• Identify issues of practical or theoretical importance of the projects and drive to solutions through innovative mathematical/computational approaches.
• Develop new algorithms, methods and visualization tools that can be deployed to MD Anderson or larger clinical research communities.
• Work closely with leadership and collaborators, identify the needs of their projects, and provide customized bioinformatics/computational support throughout their projects.
• Work with bioinformaticians, EDEA personnel, and other researchers to respond to new technologies.
• Integrate internal and public multiple-omics data, quality check the data, and prepare for data analysis

COMPETENCIES

• Continuous Learning - Learn new mathematical/statistical/biological ideas, concepts and new computational algorithms and tools in a continuous fashion
• Analytical Thinking - Gather relevant clinical/biological/statistical information thoroughly and systematically; identify the issue of the studies, split problems into simple components, solve them in a creative fashion; make sound decisions.
• Oral Communication - Express ideas clearly, concisely, and responsibly; create and maintain an environment with open channels of communication.
• Self-Adaptability - Work in situations involving uncertainty, shifting priorities, and rapid change; deal constructively with mistakes and setbacks; demonstrate flexibility.
• Self-Confidence - Recognize own knowledge, skills, and abilities; respond to challenging situations with confidence; understand limits in self.
• Collaboration with Others - Initiate and maintain relationships and networks; respect and value the contributions of all team members; encourage collaboration and balance individual and team goals.

Service Orientation

• Provide service to our stakeholders, including patients, caregivers, colleagues and other team members in a safe, courteous, accountable, efficient, and innovative manner

• Promote inclusiveness and collegiality that demonstrates respect and professionalism to our stakeholders at all times
• Model safe, ethical behavior that mitigates risk to the institution through sound business practices, and adherence to MD Anderson's Standards of Conduct, institutional policies and procedures
• Respond to requests in a timely manner while proactively communicating expectations for procedures, service arrival, or project deliverables to stakeholders
• Use the steps to HEAL (Hear, Empathize, Address and Learn) the relationship when service recovery is needed

Working Conditions

Frequency

Sedentary Environment Deadlines

Constant 67-100%

Physical Demands

Frequency

Weight

Sitting

Constant 67-100%

--

Keyboarding

Constant 67-100%

--

Standing

Occasionally 11-33%

--

Walking

Occasionally 11-33%

--

Lifting

Occasionally 11-33%

20-50 lbs

Pushing/Pulling

Occasionally 11-33%

--

Cognitive Demands

Analytical ability

Attention to detail

Oral communication

Written communication

EDUCATION:
Required: Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Applied Mathematics or related field.

Preferred: Master's degree or PhD with a concentration in Science, Engineering or related field.

EXPERIENCE:
Required: Five years experience in scientific software development/analysis. With Master's degree, three years experience required. With PhD, one year of experience required.

Preferred: Working experience in mining multiple-omics and clinical data, proficient knowledge of medicine and biology (especially genomics and molecular biology). Applicants with experience in pattern recognition/machine learning, mathematical/statistical modeling, network analysis and experience in data integration, data mining, NGS data analysis (mutations, structural variations, expression, RPPA). Experience with software development, maintenance, and version control.

Proficiency in at least one programming language such as R, C/C++, Perl, Python, JAVA, or Linux Script.

It is the policy of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by institutional policy or by federal, state or local laws unless such distinction is required by law. http://www.mdanderson.org/about-us/legal-and-policy/legal-statements/eeo-affirmative-action.html