Data Analytic Specialist

Department

BSD MED - Center for Health and the Social Sciences - Methods Core

About The Department

The Center for Health and the Social Sciences (CHeSS) provides the infrastructure to advance interdisciplinary research and training in health and social sciences at the University of Chicago. Housed under the Dean of the Biological Sciences Division's office, the Center supports and promotes innovation and collaboration as well as excellence in research, scholarship and training. CHeSS serves as an incubator of ideas and supporter of research in health and the social sciences, sponsors seminars and workshops on campus, invites nationally-known scholars and policymakers to speak on a variety of topics, supports the writing and submission of grant applications and fundraising proposals, coordinates new research initiatives and projects, manages several training programs and provides expert research methods consultation during formative and operational phases of investigations. Within the Center, the Program in Oral Health conducts research and training related to oral health and associated systemic health conditions. The Program in Oral Health has designed a 5-year randomized controlled study to study the effects of no-fee basic dental care on overall quality of life and systemic health of older adults. The Program works with other University of Chicago and external investigators on oral health projects. The Program works closely with CHeSS’ Methods Core team, which provides analytical training and support to oral health projects. CHeSS’ Methods Core also works on various other health and social science related projects across the University and outside.

Job Summary

The Center for Health and the Social Sciences (CHeSS) is seeking an experienced Data Analytic Specialist to join the Center Methods Core team and lead research initiatives within the Program in Oral Health. The Data Analytic Specialist will manage research projects related to healthcare economics, healthcare delivery science, health services research, biomedicine and clinical research. The Data Analytic Specialist will work closely with faculty and CHeSS Program Directors to design and conduct quantitative aspects of research activities within the Program in Oral Health. The Data Analytic Specialist will provide in-depth knowledge and expertise in the application of research and quantitative methods to initiate and develop research initiatives within the Program. Candidates must be able to work with multiple leaders and investigators across all aspects of project development and execution in order to produce meaningful analyses and results. We seek candidates who are adept in providing support and guidance to team members of varying technical proficiency and that work independently, acting as a resource to support users in the practical application of data to advance health and clinical research.

Responsibilities

• Conduct analysis and evaluation of internally and externally funded health research projects including observational studies and randomized control trials. Other sources of data include Medicare and Medicaid claims, the IBM MarketScan® Research Databases, PCORnet, CAPriCORN, National Death Index (NDI), NIH National COVID Cohort Collaborative (NC3) and Epic Systems, among others.
• Design and develop statistical models and analyses using relevant software such as SAS, Stata, R, Python and SQL.
• Advise research collaborators on statistics or biostatistics and the appropriate selection and application of analytic methods and algorithms. This includes advising collaborators in the selection of appropriate research methods and sample size calculation.
• Prepare statistics and measures for teams and produce reports and presentations as needed for funders and diverse audiences. Create meaningful data visualizations including charts, infographics, and other visual data elements to effectively highlight findings.
• Work with faculty members in the production of research manuscripts and publications.
• Develop and write methods sections of project reports, grant applications and papers.
• Develop expertise in independent grant applications as CO-Investigator.
• Communicate findings and share knowledge of advanced study design, methodologies, best practices and programming with other investigators and data users as appropriate.
• Work closely with fellows and students undergoing analytical training within the Program in Oral Health.
• Lead and manage individual projects, including data governance (Data Use Agreements) and IRB policy compliance of research projects.
• Prepare and present key measures designed to assess results and progress of these projects.
• Develop proposals as well as post-award reports and metrics.
• Oversee junior research staff, research assistants and students in the performance of student projects, data management and data analyses.
• Analyzes data and prepares data tables, charts, and graphs for reports. Writes grant proposals for faculty throughout the unit.
• Helps develop and implements new innovative procedures in the areas of data collection, quality control, presentation of results, and statistical analysis.
• Performs other related work as needed.
  
  

Education:

Minimum Qualifications

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

Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 2-5 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Certifications:

Preferred Qualifications

Education:

• Advanced degree or higher in statistics, biostatics, computer science, mathematics, economics, sociology, epidemiology, operations research, or related field.
  
  

Experience:

• Prior experience with data modeling, data analysis and demonstrated ability to contribute to research papers or grant proposals required. Prior experience in oral health research.
• Prior experience working with large longitudinal data sets such as healthcare surveys, hospital administrative, billing and electronic health record data, Medicare or private claims data.
• Strong working knowledge with relational database tools and programming languages (R, Python, PySpark, SQL, Stata, SAS) and health-related analyses required. Note that not all software/tools are required but experience with more than one is strongly.
• Supervisory and project management experience.
  
  

Preferred Competencies

• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team and motivation to explore and apply new technologies and methods to solve complex research problems.
• Ability to work simultaneously with multiple investigators, prioritize competing objectives, and identify opportunities to more efficiently accomplish analytical tasks.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment.
  
  

Application Documents

• Resume/CV (required)
• Cover Letter (required)
  
  

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Job Family

Research

Role Impact

Individual Contributor

FLSA Status

Exempt

Pay Frequency

Monthly

Scheduled Weekly Hours

40

Benefits Eligible

Yes

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

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