Postdoctoral Associate

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CORE JOB SUMMARY
The Post Doctoral Associate performs scientific research and studies under the supervision of managing staff. Moreover, the Post Doctoral Associate promotes institutional recognition through literal contributions to the scientific community.

CORE JOB FUNCTIONS
1. Conducts research on specific areas of study as assigned.
2. Prepares research reports and technical papers for publishing.
3. Investigates the feasibility of applying a wide variety of scientific principles and theories.
4. Maintains substantial knowledge of state-of-the-art principles and theories.
5. Develops advanced analytical models and systems and provides solutions and analyses to support strategic and tactical decisions.
6. Adheres to University and unit-level policies and procedures and safeguards University assets.

This list of duties and responsibilities is not intended to be all-inclusive and may be expanded to include other duties or responsibilities as necessary.

CORE QUALIFICATIONS
Education:
Doctorate degree in relevant field required

Experience:
No previous experience required

Certification and Licensing:
Refer to department description for applicable certification requirements

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Learning Agility: Ability to learn new procedures, technologies, and protocols, and adapt to changing priorities and work demands.
• Teamwork: Ability to work collaboratively with others and contribute to a team environment.
• Technical Proficiency: Skilled in using office software, technology, and relevant computer applications.
• Communication: Strong and clear written and verbal communication skills for interacting with colleagues and stakeholders.

DEPARTMENT ADDENDUM

Department Specific Functions

The Peggy and Harold Katz Family Drug Discovery Center (Katz Center) is seeking a Post-Doctoral Associate in cardiovascular and cardiometabolic epidemiology to work with Dr. Tali Elfassy and multidisciplinary collaborators on federally and foundation-funded research. The postdoctoral associate will participate in and increasingly lead research examining cardiovascular and cardiometabolic risk, including hypertension, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, risk prediction, health disparities, and related cognitive outcomes. Research will primarily use data from large, well-characterized epidemiologic cohorts and national health surveys. This position is intended for an individual seeking advanced training toward an independent research career in epidemiology, population health, or a related field, with opportunities to lead analyses and first-author manuscripts, contribute to grant development, present findings at scientific meetings, and develop independent research questions aligned with their interests.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Lead and collaborate on epidemiologic research projects from development of the research question and analytic plan through analysis, interpretation, manuscript preparation, and publication.
• Conduct statistical analyses of large, complex longitudinal cohort and survey datasets, including data management, variable development, quality control, statistical modeling, and interpretation.
• Apply appropriate epidemiologic and statistical methods, including longitudinal and time-to-event analyses, complex survey methods, risk prediction, and other observational study methods, as appropriate.
• Lead preparation of first-author manuscripts and contribute substantively to collaborative manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed journals.
• Conduct literature reviews and synthesize existing evidence to inform study hypotheses, analytic approaches, and interpretation of findings.
• Contribute to the development of NIH and other grant applications, including scientific writing, preliminary analyses, development of analytic plans, and preparation of tables and figures.
• Develop clear tables, figures, and data visualizations and present research findings to collaborators, study committees, and at national scientific meetings.
• Work collaboratively with investigators, statisticians, clinicians, trainees, and external collaborators across multidisciplinary research teams.
• Assist with mentoring students and trainees involved in research projects.
• Maintain rigorous documentation of analytic decisions, code, derived variables, and research workflows and adhere to principles of reproducible research and research integrity.
• Demonstrate increasing scientific independence by taking ownership of research projects, troubleshooting analytic challenges, and moving projects from research question through analysis and manuscript preparation.
• With mentorship, develop an independent line of research and pursue opportunities for career-development and independent research funding.

Department Specific Qualifications

Education:

Ph.D., Sc.D., Dr.P.H., or equivalent doctoral degree in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Public Health, Population Health, or a closely related quantitative field.

Certification and Licensing:

N/A

Experience:

• Strong training in epidemiologic methods and statistical analysis of observational data.
• Demonstrated experience managing and analyzing large epidemiologic datasets.
• Proficiency in SAS or comparable statistical programming software, with the ability and willingness to work extensively in SAS.
• Experience with multivariable regression and longitudinal and/or time-to-event methods.
• Experience with causal inference
• Evidence of strong scientific writing ability, including experience preparing peer-reviewed manuscripts.
• Ability to independently develop and execute analyses while working effectively within multidisciplinary collaborative teams.
• Excellent organizational, written and verbal communication, and project-management skills.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to reproducible, rigorous research.

Preferred Experience, Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes:

• Research experience in cardiovascular disease, cardiometabolic disease, hypertension, diabetes, cognitive aging/dementia, or health disparities.
• Experience working with large prospective cohort studies or nationally representative survey data.
• Experience accounting for complex sampling designs and survey weights; experience with SUDAAN is desirable but not required.
• Experience with cardiovascular risk prediction, survival analysis, repeated-measures/longitudinal analyses, or related advanced epidemiologic methods.
• Record of first-author peer-reviewed publications.
• Experience contributing to NIH or other extramural grant applications.
• Interest in developing an independent research program and pursuing career-development or independent research funding.
• Ability to effectively visualize data and present findings to diverse audiences.

This is a core job profile description and is not reflective of all duties that may be assigned to a specific position in each individual department. The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and primary responsibilities of this core job profile. Specific duties and tasks may vary based upon departmental needs. Other duties may be assigned to the above consistent with the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for the job.

The University of Miami offers competitive salaries and a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, tuition remission and more.

UHealth-University of Miami Health System, South Florida's only university-based health system, provides leading-edge patient care powered by the ground breaking research and medical education at the Miller School of Medicine. As an academic medical center, we are proud to serve South Florida, Latin America and the Caribbean. Our physicians represent more than 100 specialties and sub-specialties, and have more than one million patient encounters each year. Our tradition of excellence has earned worldwide recognition for outstanding teaching, research and patient care. We're the challenge you've been looking for.

The University of Miami is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Applicants and employees are protected from discrimination based on certain categories protected by Federal law.

Job Status:
Full time

Employee Type:
Staff