Postdoctoral Associate - Statistics

Rice University • Houston, TX

2d • Onsite

About The Position

Boasting a 300-acre tree-lined campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has a 6-to-1 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio, and a residential college system, which supports students intellectually, emotionally and culturally through social events, intramural sports, student plays, lectures series, courses and student government. Developing close-knit, diverse college communities is a strong campus tradition, which is why Rice is highly ranked for best quality of life and best value among private universities. Rice is also a wonderful place to work. Rice faculty, staff and students share values that are essential to our success as a healthy community. Those values guide our decisions and behaviors and shape Rice’s culture. They come through in the way we treat each other and the welcome we extend to our visitors. These values can be recalled simply by our name — RICE — Responsibility, Integrity, Community and Excellence. About George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing The George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing ranks among the top 20 undergraduate engineering programs (US News & World Report) and is strongly committed to nurturing the aspirations of faculty, staff, and students in an inclusive environment. We seek greater representation of women, minorities, people with disabilities, and veterans in disciplines in which they have historically been underrepresented; to attract international students from a wider range of countries and backgrounds; to accelerate progress in building a faculty and staff who are diverse in background and thought, and we support an inclusive environment that fosters interaction and understanding within our diverse community.
Position Summary: The Department of Statistics has an open Postdoctoral Research Associate position to work under the direction of Professor Marek Kimmel . The Kimmel Group focuses on statistical and population genetics and the genomics of human disease, systems biology (including the modeling of signaling pathways and biomolecular structure–function relationships), and stochastic modeling of disease processes such as progression, detection, and treatment, with primary applications in cancer research. The group has a strong, well-documented record of interdisciplinary collaboration, working closely with cell and molecular biologists, geneticists, epidemiologists, and physicians, as well as pure and applied mathematicians, to develop and analyze mathematical and computational models of cancer. The postdoctoral researcher will conduct mathematical and computational analyses, as well as statistical inference, for models describing the proliferation, mutation, and selection of blood cell precursors in human bone marrow. A primary focus will be advancing the group’s work on clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP), a condition associated with an increased risk of leukemia. From a mathematical perspective, this work involves branching processes in fluctuating environments, informed by extensive and rapidly growing biological datasets. Approximately 50% of the postdoc’s time will be reserved for pursuing independent research within a closely related area. This position is a one year term-limited position is funded by a grant, soft and/or restricted funds. Continued employment is contingent on the renewal of funding .

Requirements

• Ph.D. or other doctoral degree in Applied Mathematics, Computational Mathematics, Mathematical Biology, Statistics, or related fields
• No experience required
• Strong expertise in the theory and application of birth–death and related stochastic processes
• Proficiency in both frequentist and Bayesian statistical inference
• Familiarity with random simulations
• Demonstrated interest in the dynamics of biological systems

Responsibilities

• Conduct mathematical, computational, and statistical analyses of models describing the proliferation, mutation, and selection of blood cell precursors in human bone marrow
• Advance the group’s research on clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP), a condition associated with an increased risk of leukemia
• Develop and analyze branching process models in fluctuating environments informed by extensive recent biological data
• Develop research manuscripts and presentation materials highlighting postdoctoral research outcomes
• Attend required research meetings, including the NIH/NCI P01 grant’s monthly meetings, weekly group seminars, and weekly meetings with Dr. Kimmel
• Performs all other duties as assigned

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees