Research Data Technician

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Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the Posting End Date.

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At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.

Job Summary

A position is available immediately for a highly motivated Data Analyst/Scientist ('Analyst') to join a dynamic research group in the Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine. The Department of Medicine provides excellence in research, teaching and clinical services related to the nature, cause and prevention of adult diseases. As the largest Department in the Faculty of Medicine, comprised of 18 Divisions, and over 1,200 faculty and staff located throughout the Province of British Columbia, the Department of Medicine is committed to ensuring the success of learners and faculty, and to contributing to the health of the Province of British Columbia.

The successful candidate will work closely with the Principal Investigator and members of the research team and will be involved in research projects that will require skills in a variety of statistical and data science techniques. The Analyst's primary location will be home-based, with 25% of the position in-person and on-site at at the Immunology Lab,VGH for training purposes and/or progress updates/presentations.

Organizational Status
The successful candidate will report to the Principal Investigator and Data Manager/Project manager. They will work in collaboration as a member of an interdisciplinary team with academic researchers at UBC and partner institutions.

Work Performed

The Analyst will be involved in research projects that will require skills in a variety of statistical and data science techniques. Specifically, the work responsibilities of the Analyst will include:

• Preparation of reduced datasets specific to the project by understanding project requirements, needs and restrictions, ensuring data is clean and accurate
• Data linkage of various databases/data sources
• Development of complex SAS macros and scripts to perform statistical analysis based on approved analytical plans
• Knowledge of R (R Project of Statistical Computing), SQL and relational databases, Tableau and other software
• Performance of data visualization tasks and reporting for different studies
• Performance of outcome derivation based on the approved data management plans
• Advising on data structure, restriction and creation of the novel variables
• Conduct of literature searches for developing statistical analysis plans
• Collaborative work on writing scientific papers by providing statistical results, writing methods and result sections, and preparing tables and figures as required
• Participation in the preparation of written and oral presentations that summarize data analysis results, interpret findings
• Assistance in analysis design and statistical planning for new projects
• Implementation of computational pipelines involving multiple data sets to answer project-specific research questions
• Work that is performed independently or under minimum supervision in multidisciplinary project teams
• Following privacy protocols maintaining confidentiality
• Participating in weekly research meetings, larger team meetings, as well as project specific meetings which the analyst is involved in
• Performance of other related duties as required
• Continued skill advancement, ideally to advance overall data science and data analyst support for the research group and research outcomes

Consequence of Error/Judgement
All duties performed by the Analyst should adhere to the data privacy and confidentiality policies, standard operating procedures, and UBC policies. Failure to comply with national, provincial, institutional, or ethical standards could result in significant consequences to the subjects, the study, the Principal Investigator, and the institution. Errors in judgment could harm the subjects, delay the progress of the study, result in loss of funding, or otherwise influence the integrity of clinical research. Non-routine decisions or actions should be deferred to the Senior Scientist.

Supervision Received
The Analyst will receive supervision from the Principal Investigator and Data Manager. The Analyst will also receive necessary training from the Bioinformatician, as well as other members of the research team.

Supervision Given
The Analyst may at times supervise students or staff at a lower work classification. This may involve training these team members on the basics of statistical analysis and programming.

Minimum Qualifications
Completion of a relevant technical program or a university degree in a relevant discipline and a minimum three years of related experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

- Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one's own

- Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one's own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion

Preferred Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in a relevant field such as Computer Science, Epidemiology, Mathematics, Statistics or an equivalent combination of education training and experience. Undergraduate or graduate coursework in statistics, data analysis or research methods are an asset. Minimum one year of recent work experience providing data extraction, cleaning, merging and managing large complex datasets. Data analysis experience is required. Demonstrated high proficiency with SAS software and R R Project of Statistical Computing. Proficiency in MS Excel and MS Office applications. Knowledge of SQL and relational databases desirable. Knowledge of Tableau desirable. Ability to validate and audit data. Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines. Ability to work independently and effectively in multidisciplinary project teams.

Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person.

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.