Biostatisticians

The Study Design and Biostatistics Center ( SDBC ) at the University of Utah is seeking a highly motivated Master’s-level biostatistician to join a team of approximately 30 biostatisticians and epidemiologists to collaborate with clinical and translational researchers in biomedical research. The successful candidate will work effectively in the Adam Bress Lab on a variety of high-impact projects that apply cutting-edge methods, including target trial emulation and modern causal inference to evaluate the effectiveness, harms, and costs of antihypertensive treatments. The lab uses both randomized trials and large-scale electronic health record ( EHR ) data to study outcomes such as cardiovascular disease, dementia, and cancer. The lab applies advanced causal inference methods to address key challenges in real-world evidence research, including treatment nonadherence, fixed and time-varying confounding bias, irregular assessment times, informative censoring, and unmeasured confounding. The Bress Lab also investigates treatment effect heterogeneity and benefit-harm tradeoffs to generate high-quality evidence that informs clinical decision-making and the design of confirmatory trials.

The successful candidate will contribute to all phases of the research process, including study design, data management, statistical programming, analysis, visualization, and interpretation of results. Responsibilities include writing analysis plans, preparing reports and manuscripts, and clearly explaining statistical methods and findings to diverse collaborators. Candidates should demonstrate strong proficiency in R programming, experience managing and analyzing large-scale datasets (e.g., EHR ), and a commitment to producing accurate, reproducible code. A strong interest in continuously learning new statistical methods, combined with excellent communication skills and the ability to work both independently and collaboratively, is essential. This position offers the opportunity to collaborate with NIH -funded investigators on rigorous methodological research in comparative effectiveness, survival analysis, and causal inference. The role includes mentorship by PhD-level biostatisticians and ongoing opportunities for professional development in a supportive academic environment.

Learn more about the great benefits of working for University of Utah: benefits.utah.edu

The department may choose to hire at any of the below job levels and associated pay rates based on their business need and budget.

Responsibilities

• Clean and manage large, complex datasets; develop reproducible code pipelines, implement quality assurance checks, and maintain clear documentation.
• Write statistical analysis plans and perform sample size calculations; conduct data analyses; generate reports and graphical summaries; and contribute to presentations and publications.
• Have a solid foundation in statistical methods, including multivariable regression, longitudinal data analysis, categorical data analysis, and survival analysis.
• Conduct comparative effectiveness analysis using modern causal inference methods such as inverse probability weighting and related approaches.
• Implement target trial emulation framework using large-scale observational data sources, including electronic health records.
• Write accurate, modular, and well-documented R code with an emphasis on reproducibility and transparency.
• Collaborate effectively with investigators from diverse disciplines and communicate statistical results clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Minimum qualifications:

• Master’s degree in Biostatistics, Statistics, Data Science, or a related quantitative field
• Solid knowledge of standard statistical analysis procedures, especially survival analysis and longitudinal data analysis
• Proficiency in R programming, with demonstrated ability to write accurate, efficient, and well-documented code; experience developing R packages or analytic pipelines is highly desirable.
• Experience working with large-scale observational data, including data wrangling, cleaning, and harmonization.
• Familiar with comparative effectiveness research and basic causal inference methods (e.g., counterfactual framework, inverse probability weighting).
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to explain technical concepts clearly to non-statistical audiences.
• Demonstrated initiative and ownership of analytic tasks, with strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Genuine enthusiasm for learning and applying new statistical methods in collaborative, interdisciplinary research settings.

Minimum Qualifications

EQUIVALENCY STATEMENT : 1 year of higher education can be substituted for 1 year of directly related work experience (Example: bachelor’s degree = 4 years of directly related work experience).

Department may hire employee at one of the following job levels:

Biostatistician, II: Requires a bachelor’s (or equivalency) + 4 years or a master’s (or equivalency) + 2 years of directly related work experience.

Biostatistician, III : Requires a bachelor’s (or equivalency) + 6 years or a master’s (or equivalency) + 4 years of directly related work experience.

Preferences

• Experience applying target trial emulation frameworks using observational data.
• Experience using Python for statistical programming and data science applications.
• Experience using AI-assisted tools (e.g., ChatGPT, GitHub Copilot) to enhance productivity and code quality.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities and meet project deadlines.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in a collaborative, interdisciplinary research team.
• Prior experience in biomedical or clinical research is desirable but not required.
• At least one year of experience in a statistical consulting or statistical programming role.
• Meticulous attention to code accuracy, reproducibility, and documentation; experience with version control systems (e.g., Git) is a plus.