Data Scientist - Operations Research

UT MD Anderson Cancer Center • Houston, TX

7h • Onsite

About The Position

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is home to the Institute for Data Science in Oncology, a multidisciplinary program focused on applying data science and emerging technologies to improve safety, quality, and access in clinical care and operations. Within the Institute’s surgical data science program, the Data Scientist - Operations Research supports translational research in image-guided surgery and collaborates closely with data scientists, engineers, clinicians, and scientific partners to advance innovative approaches in surgical care. UT MD Anderson is a leading institution focused on cancer care, research, education, and prevention. The Data Scientist - Operations Research contributes to the development and clinical translation of advanced imaging, image analysis, and registration methods. The Data Scientist - Operations Research works with surgeons and collaborators across the institution, with primary areas of impact in orthopaedic surgery and neurosurgery. The Data Scientist - Operations Research plays a key role in advancing computational approaches that support data-driven surgical care. The ideal candidate has advanced education in science, engineering, computer science, statistics, computational biology, or a related field, with preference given to candidates holding a Master’s or PhD degree. Preferred experience includes clinical operations and workflow analysis in surgery, radiology, or other clinical specialties, along with knowledge of patient safety factors, systems engineering, systems integration, requirements management, risk mitigation, programming in Python and/or Matlab, statistical analysis, and advanced data science techniques. Why Us? Join UT MD Anderson and contribute to transformative research that improves patient care, safety, quality, and operational efficiency. This role offers opportunities to collaborate with leading clinicians, engineers, and researchers while advancing innovative surgical data science initiatives. Team members benefit from meaningful work, professional development opportunities, and a comprehensive benefits package that supports long-term career growth and personal well-being.

Requirements

• Demonstrated experience with systems engineering, systems integration, workflow analysis, process mapping, human factors engineering, clinical data analysis, specification and management of requirements, risk management / mitigation, unsupervised learning, decision trees, A/B testing, and natural language processing
• Bachelor's Degree Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Physics, Applied Mathematics, Science, Engineering, Computer Science, Statistics, Computational Biology, or related field.
• 3 years Scientific software or industry development/analysis experience.
• 1 year Required experience with Master's degree.
• With PhD, no experience required.

Nice To Haves

• Knowledge and experience with computing / programming (Python and/or Matlab)
• Statistical analysis
• Experience with clinical operations and workflow in surgery, radiology, or other areas of clinical medicine
• Experience with factors affecting patient safety
• Master’s or PhD degree
• Clinical operations and workflow analysis in surgery, radiology, or other clinical specialties
• Knowledge of patient safety factors, systems engineering, systems integration, requirements management, risk mitigation

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with clinicians, engineers, data scientists, and scientific partners on surgical data science initiatives
• Work closely with surgeons and collaborators in orthopaedic surgery, neurosurgery, and related clinical specialties
• Assist supervisors and senior research staff with reports, grant requests, and research activities
• Provide consulting support to internal teams and external collaborators regarding data models, findings, and process improvements
• Plan and execute experiments and evaluate, interpret, and communicate study results
• Participate in the development and revision of research techniques and methodologies
• Assemble, operate, and support laboratory apparatus and equipment used in research activities
• Develop computational modeling approaches related to surgical data science
• Work with clinical hardware and software, including anesthesia systems, imaging platforms, surgical robots, and related technologies
• Capture and curate multidimensional data from healthcare environments
• Utilize healthcare information systems including electronic medical records, EPIC, PACS, and related clinical data sources
• Support development of new data science methods in surgery
• Create data tools for analytics and data science team members
• Design and maintain optimal data pipeline architecture
• Build systems for extraction, transformation, and loading (ETL) of data from diverse clinical data sources
• Develop analytics tools that generate actionable insights related to clinical workflow and operational efficiency
• Supervise technicians and provide guidance on assigned work activities
• Support requirements specification, management, and risk mitigation activities
• Participate in workflow analysis, process mapping, and systems integration efforts
• Perform other duties as assigned

Benefits

• Employer-paid medical coverage starting day one for employees working 30+ hours/week
• Optional group dental, vision, life, AD&D, and disability insurance.
• Accruals for PTO and Extended Illness Bank
• Paid holidays, wellness, childcare, and other leave options.
• Tuition Assistance Program after six months of service
• Access to extensive wellness, fitness, and employee resource groups.
• Defined-benefit pension through the Teachers Retirement System
• Voluntary retirement plans
• Employer-paid life and reduced salary protection programs.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level