Biostatistician

Job Description

Westat is an employee-owned corporation providing research services to agencies of the U.S. Government, as well as businesses, foundations, and state and local governments. Westat's research, technical, and administrative staff of more than 2,000 is located at our headquarters in Rockville, Maryland, near Washington, DC.

Westat is committed to building a diverse workforce and a culture of inclusivity, belonging and equity for all. We believe that our greatest strength draws on the different backgrounds, cultures, perspectives and experiences of our employees.

Job Summary:
Westat is seeking a Biostatistician/Bioinformatician, to perform statistical analysis on large genomics and clinical datasets (whole genome DNA methylation, DNA exome genotyping, mRNA sequencing, clinical data). You will collaborate and consult with external investigators and internal project team members on your work designing and executing analyses on such data and other omics data.

You will provide bioinformatics support including design and data analysis for Westat projects to support and contribute to scientific peer reviewed publications. You will present computational and statistical analyses results to collaborators and assist them with data access, analysis, and interpretation of the results. You will build or apply appropriate algorithms and techniques to answer defined biological questions, ensuring that results are scientifically robust and well documented.

A hybrid work arrangement with 1-2 days on-site at a Westat office location is preferred, remote work arrangements will be considered.

Job Responsibilities:
• Communicate and collaborate with external investigators using various platforms, tailoring communication to varying skill levels.
• Manage large datasets, including survey data, genomics and epigenomics data.
• Generate analytic variables, codebooks, and data dictionaries.
• Design, develop, and deploy robust high-throughput, genomic data processing, quality controling and analysis pipelines.
• Conduct advanced statistical analyses, genotyping analysis, genetic imputation, machine learning application in genetics and genomics and create visual representations (such as Manhattan plots, forest plots) of data using R or Python software.
• Run statistical tests for genome-wide association studies (GWAS), epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS), proteomic studies, principal component analysis (PCA), and meta-analysis on high-performance computing (HPC) clusters.
• Use genomics/epigenomics analysis tools (e.g., PLINK, METAL, SmartPCA, RVTEST, BioConductor packages (such as minfi, SeSAMe).
• Contribute to report results for publication in peer-reviewed and technical journals.

Basic Qualifications:
• A Ph.D in bioinformatics, computational biology, biostatistics or related field with 2 years of relevant experience or a Master's degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, biostatistics or related field with 4 years of relevant experience.
• Research experience in genetics and genomics.
• Demonstrated expertise with regression modeling
• Programming experience in R, SAS, Python, or comparable.

Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience with genotype imputation and a comprehensive understanding of biology.
• Experience with Shell script writing.

Other Required Qualifications:
• Demonstrated communication skills.
• Collaboration with teams, managers and/or clients.
• Organization skills, including time management ability.
• Detail oriented.

Westat offers a well-rounded and comprehensive benefits program focused on wellness and work/life balance. Subject to plan requirements, employees may participate in:

• Employee Stock Ownership Plan
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
• Paid Parental Leave
• Vacation Leave (15 days per year)
• Sick Leave (10 days per year)
• Holiday Leave (7 Government Holidays and 2 Floating Holidays)
• Professional Development
• Health Advocate
• Employee Assistance Program
• Travel Accident Insurance
• Medical Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Short Term Disability Insurance
• Long Term Disability Insurance
• Life and AD&D Insurance
• Critical Illness Insurance
• Supplemental Life Insurance
• Flexible Spending Account
• Health Savings Account

This opportunity will be posted for a minimum of 5 days and applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis.

Westat is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship status, genetic information, gender identity or expression, or any other protected status under applicable law.

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