Health policy Jobs in Durham nc

Overview

RTI International has an opening for a data scientist / modeler in the innovation economics and policy practice within the Center for Applied Economics and Strategy (CAES). Our team in CAES draws on a range of quantitative and qualitative skill sets to produce high quality research for government agencies, foundations, and non-profit organizations. Our work requires implementing the best available theory and methods in assessing research, development and innovation programs and their economic outcomes to report cogent and actionable results to our clients.

The successful candidate will work with a team of economists and policy analysts to apply machine learning and data science approaches to assess research, development and innovation policies and programs, and technological innovations arising from different sectors of the research and development ecosystem, including biomedicine. They will do this by building new models or utilizing existing standard models, and methods.

The successful candidate will have training in data science, machine learning, economic modeling or related disciplines and experience applying modeling best practices in the maintenance and enhancement of core datasets and identifying fit-for-purpose technical approaches in partnership with senior staff and project teams. The role will execute quantitative analyses and clearly articulate results to a wide range of audiences. We seek a candidate with a clear interest in R&D and innovation programs, a versatile technical skill set, demonstrated R and / or python programming experience, and strong writing skills.

Responsibilities

The successful candidate will be expected to contribute to the following task areas :

• Conduct literature reviews to identify best available data and / or best practices for data processing and analysis
• Design, execute, and communicate data analysis and research
• Experience with modern open-source programming languages used in data science, such as : Python, SQL, R.
• Lead the maintenance of core datasets to our analyses in replicable code and version-controlled repositories (i.e. via GitHub)
• Participate in and / or lead projects, tasks, and staff in a wide variety of technical activities : data pipeline development and orchestration, data wrangling / munging, data infrastructure, ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes, exploratory data analyses (EDA), DataOps, AI and machine learning, deep learning, natural language processing (NLP), microsimulation modeling, MLOps, generative AI and Large Language Models (LLMs), computer vision, automation, cloud computing, social media analytics, privacy analytics, rapid prototyping, data visualization, and user-centered design.
• Ability to develop ETL pipelines and conduct analyses using a wide variety of sources (e.g., relational databases, text and unstructured files, sensor data, image and video data, streaming data).
• Contribute to the development of research, development and innovation economic models, incorporate underlying datasets and understand data availability and limitations.
• Develop post-processing routines for analyzing, reporting, and visualizing model outputs.
• Visualize data in clear and compelling graphics including dynamic implementations (e.g. in Tableau or R markdown).
• Maintain currency with key issues and concepts in innovation topic areas including research policies and programs, R&D workforce policy, research assessment, research commercialization and technology transfer.
• Work with a wide variety of data content and formats, including grant award data, research output data (such as patents, publications), economic data including industry, household, and national accounts information, global financial data, government statistical datasets for R&D and innovation.
• Collaborate effectively with project team members, and with external scientists.
• Manage workflow in a timely, realistic, and cost-effective manner to meet client expectations.
• Contribute to grant, cooperative agreement, and contract proposals.
• Present research methods and findings via technical reports, journal articles, and presentations.

Qualifications

Qualified applicants should have the following :

Preferred

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