Computational Research Associate

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The General Hospital Corporation

Mass General Brigham relies on a wide range of professionals, including doctors, nurses, business people, tech experts, researchers, and systems analysts to advance our mission. As a not-for-profit, we support patient care, research, teaching, and community service, striving to provide exceptional care. We believe that high-performing teams drive groundbreaking medical discoveries and invite all applicants to join us and experience what it means to be part of Mass General Brigham.

Job Summary

Summary:

Collaborates with team members to assist in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data sets.
Essential Functions-Writes and runs basic queries as needed.
-Assists in maintaining existing reporting systems.
-Contributes to presentations to key stakeholders.
-Works with senior analysts to design, maintain, and distribute reports.
-Learn leading practice analysis methodologies.
-Conduct continuous analysis of current performance and accurately forecast data trends.

Qualifications

Position Overview

Dr. Kenneth Westerman is recruiting a Computational Research Associate to join his interdisciplinary research group at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School (HMS). The associate will contribute to cutting-edge genetic epidemiology analyses in large biobank and cohort datasets, with implications for precision medicine and cardiometabolic disease prevention.

The position will be co-supervised by Dr. Arun Durvasula at the University of Southern California (USC). This is an excellent opportunity for a motivated early-career researcher to develop advanced computational skills, build a strong publication record, and be a part of a world-class research community at MGH, HMS, and the Broad Institute.

Key Responsibilities

The associate will work with Dr. Westerman to investigate genetic factors modifying the relationship between non-genetic exposures (such as adiposity and age) and cardiometabolic risk factors. Specific responsibilities include:

• Conducting gene-environment interaction analyses in large-scale biobank and cohort datasets
• Harmonizing heterogeneous datasets including socioeconomic and lifestyle covariates and cardiometabolic trait phenotypes
• Contributing to the preparation of scientific manuscripts and presenting findings at internal group meetings and external conferences
• Collaborating with an interdisciplinary team spanning computational scientists and clinician-researchers across USC, MGH, HMS, and the Broad Institute

Beyond this primary focus, there are opportunities to become involved with projects from our broader portfolio including polygenic risk scores, multi-omics analysis, and classical epidemiology in large cohort datasets.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in genetic epidemiology, computational biology, bioinformatics, statistics, or a related field
• Strong programming skills in R and/or Python and comfort with Linux/shell scripting
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Highly self-motivated and driven to contribute to scientific research

Preferred

• Experience with biomedical cloud computing environments (e.g., Terra, DNAnexus) and large-scale genomic datasets (e.g., UK Biobank)
• Experience with genome-wide association studies and gene-environment interaction analysis
• Background and interest in cardiometabolic disease biology

Compensation

This is a full-time, benefits-eligible position. Salary will be based on experience, beginning at a minimum of $55,000 per year and a maximum of $60,000 per year.

Additional Job Details (if applicable)

Physical Requirements

Remote Type

Hybrid

Work Location

100 Cambridge Street

Scheduled Weekly Hours

40

Employee Type

Regular

Work Shift

Day (United States of America)

Pay Range

$53,040.00 - $75,888.80/Annual

Grade

5

At Mass General Brigham, we believe in recognizing and rewarding the unique value each team member brings to our organization. Our approach to determining base pay is comprehensive, and any offer extended will take into account your skills, relevant experience if applicable, education, certifications and other essential factors. The base pay information provided offers an estimate based on the…