Genomics Sr Staff Scientist

Stanford Health Care • Stanford, CA

8d • $69 - $91 • Hybrid

About The Position

As a member of Stanford Health Care’s Clinical Laboratory team, the Genomic Senior Staff Scientist collaborates with laboratory directors, genetic counselors, laboratory technologists, bioinformaticians, and clinicians to provide clinical genetic and genomic test results. The role is responsible for prioritizing and interpreting variants from clinical sequencing data, evaluating the clinical relevance of variants identified by diagnostic tests using applicable internal and external guidelines and evidence from scientific literature.

Additional work includes drafting clinical reports, contributing to quality and process improvement and development projects, assisting with the design, development, and evaluation of clinical-grade molecular diagnostic tests, evaluating and implementing evolving variant interpretation standards and workflows, and helping onboard new team members. The position also supports clinical validations, analysis systems and workflow development, quality documentation, audit preparation, and productivity improvements. The role is based at Stanford Health Care in Palo Alto and is listed as hybrid, full-time, day shift, eight hours.

Requirements

• PhD or MS in Molecular Biology, Genetics, or a related discipline or field from an accredited college or university.
• At least four years of work experience in genetics or cancer genetics, or a combination of relevant experiences.
• At least one year of work experience in a CLIA-certified clinical laboratory performing diagnostic testing.
• At least one year of experience with NGS-based tests and at least one year of experience in germline or cancer diagnostic testing.
• Experience in next-generation sequencing and variant classification or curation.
• Ability to understand scientific literature and experimental procedures, including their limitations and applications in a clinical setting.
• Experience critically evaluating genetic data, research publications, and online resources.
• Experience with databases, tools, and resources commonly used in human or model organism genetics and genomics, such as ClinVar/ClinGen, gnomAD, ExAC, HGMD, and COSMIC.
• Experience in multidisciplinary team-based projects.
• Ability to identify or propose and lead implementation of significant productivity enhancements, particularly those that reduce turnaround times or costs.
• Change-management capability.
• Detail orientation and strong analytical skills.
• Computer skills, including word processing and spreadsheet applications.
• Strong written and oral English communication skills.
• Experience interpreting variants in a clinical genetic testing laboratory.
• Experience working independently and on team-based projects.
• Ability to perform day-to-day operations independently with little assistance from team members or laboratory directors.
• Ability to participate in clinical validation of a new test or update to an existing test with minimal supervision and create validation and draft SOP documentation requiring minimal corrections.

Nice To Haves

• Knowledge to independently design and complete clinical validations and oversee development and drafting of validation and SOP documentation.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, attention to detail, and problem-solving ability.
• Clear understanding of CAP requirements.

Responsibilities

• Identify clinically significant germline and/or somatic sequence variants using established tools and workflows.
• Collect genetic, clinical, and molecular information from peer-reviewed scientific journals and public data sources.
• Critically analyze and verify the accuracy of published data and abstract information relevant to individual clinical case analyses.
• Review patient medical records and abstract information relevant to individual clinical case analyses.
• Independently classify clinically significant germline and/or somatic sequence variants.
• Summarize analysis results and communicate them effectively in written and verbal formats.
• Meet clinical laboratory interpretation turnaround times and complete assigned work volume efficiently to support prompt patient care.
• Identify production pressure points and take on projects to improve workplace productivity.
• Participate in developing new clinical-grade genetic tests and enhancing existing assays.
• Assist with clinical validation of new tests and workflow updates.
• Assist in developing or integrating analysis systems, software tools, and workflows for new and existing laboratory tests.
• Identify and report errors or inconsistencies in analysis tools or online resources.
• Participate in software system verification and quality improvement projects; create verification documentation and draft SOP documentation, and suggest improvements to existing test SOPs.
• Lead implementation of productivity enhancements.
• Curate genes for new Mendelian (germline) and/or oncology (somatic) test development.
• Contribute to audit preparation, including documentation and quality monitoring, to meet CAP/CLIA requirements.
• Create reference or training resource materials.
• Adhere to C-I-CARE standards and collaborate to resolve misunderstandings or issues early.
• Assist in onboarding new team members.

What This Job Offers

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