Research Data Scientist - Molecular and Precision Medicine / Medicine

Penn State University•Tallahassee, FL

23h

About The Position

The Penn State College of Medicine, Department of Molecular and Precision Medicine and Department of Medicine, seek a PhD-trained Senior Bioinformatician / Research Data Scientist to support an expanding portfolio of translational and precision health research programs. The successful candidate will develop, implement, and evaluate advanced computational and statistical approaches to analyze high-dimensional biological data, including multi-omics datasets. This role will collaborate closely with faculty investigators across disciplines—including aging biology, infectious diseases, cancer biology, and mucosal immunology—to integrate genomics, transcriptomics (including single-cell), proteomics, and related datasets into mechanistic and translational insights. The Senior Bioinformatician will serve as a key computational partner across multiple projects, contributing to study design, data analysis, visualization, and interpretation while helping to build sustainable computational infrastructure within the department. This position will serve as the senior bioinformatics lead across multiple translational research initiatives, enabling integration of large-scale datasets into biologically meaningful discoveries. The role is central to advancing precision health initiatives and strengthening the department’s computational research capacity.

Requirements

PhD in Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Biology, Biomedical Sciences, Biostatistics, Computer Science, or related field
Demonstrated experience analyzing high-dimensional biological or omics datasets
Strong programming skills in Python (required) and familiarity with data science frameworks
Experience with single-cell data analysis tools (e.g., Scanpy or similar platforms)
Experience integrating multi-omics datasets
Ability to work collaboratively across interdisciplinary research teams
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Bachelor's Degree
1+ years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience accepted

Nice To Haves

Background in biology, immunology, cancer biology, infectious diseases, aging, or related biomedical fields
Experience working in an academic medical center environment
Familiarity with high-performance computing environments and cloud-based analysis
Track record of contribution to peer-reviewed publications

Responsibilities

Develop, select, and apply advanced computational and statistical methods to analyze complex biological datasets
Perform integrative multi-omics analyses (e.g., genomics, transcriptomics, single-cell RNA-seq, proteomics, epigenomics)
Utilize and implement tools such as Scanpy and other single-cell analysis frameworks
Develop and maintain reproducible workflows in Python and related programming environments
Collaborate with faculty to design computational strategies aligned with research aims
Develop novel algorithms, software tools, and analytical pipelines to address emerging research questions
Generate high-quality visualizations and analytical summaries for manuscripts, grant applications, and presentations
Contribute to interpretation of results and development of new hypotheses
Support training of trainees and junior investigators in data analysis best practices
Ensure data management, documentation, and reproducibility standards are maintained