Career Center

The Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative (BHHI) is searching for a Lead Statistician to direct our quantitative analysis team (“quant team”). The position serves as a resource for advanced statistical methods and computational practices, and also as a manager of a team of four to five statisticians, epidemiologists and data scientists who support the various research projects at BHHI. Key roles and responsibilities include working closely with faculty members to translate research questions into concrete and quantifiable analysis; coordinating with faculty and project managers to plan and move forward large-scale projects; managing a team of statisticians and data scientists with varied areas of expertise; and mentoring quantitative analysts to deepen abilities and develop new skills.

BHHI research spans a number of quantitative disciplines such as epidemiological longitudinal analysis, survey methods including primary data collection, causal inference methods for program evaluations, machine learning and prediction, computational methods for analysis of big data, public policy analysis, and data visualization. The Lead Statistician will not need expertise in all these areas, but they will need to provide expert guidance in many of the areas or have a sufficient working knowledge to manage the members of the quant team with the specific expertise. The quant team typically supports 10-20 projects at any given time and the Lead Statistician must efficiently manage each analyst’s engagement with each project, pairing the methodological requirements of the project to the analyst most suited to carry out the analysis.

In addition to technical expertise and management experience, the role requires strong communication abilities and a degree of analytical judgement. The Lead Statistician must be able to convey complex statistical concepts to clinical investigators and to stakeholders without a research background. As BHHI projects target a wide range of audiences, including academic journals, briefs for policymakers and timely analysis to local officials, the Lead Statistician must exercise experienced judgement on which methods will be most suitable for the project at hand. This requires balancing the adherence to theoretical statistical assumptions with the practical needs of conducting research with complex populations, such as those experiencing homelessness. Time sensitive projects, often in service to the San Francisco Department of Public Health, may require a “best we can do under these constraints” approach. Candidates should have demonstratable experience in balancing these needs.

The Lead Statistician will be expected to use their professional expertise to make scientific and scholarly contributions and may participate in University and Public Service. Screening of applicants will begin immediately and will continue as needed throughout the recruitment period. Salary will be commensurate with the applicant’s experience and training. 

Qualifications:
PhD in a Statistics, Biostatistics or related medical or social science degree with strong knowledge of causal inference and computational methods. Candidates should have a track record of applying advanced quantitative research techniques or twenty or more years of equivalent experience; a substantial track record in writing analysis and methods sections in grant applications and reports; record of academic accomplishments including significant contributions to published research and professional recognition in the field; professional level experience supervising staff; experience with R, Stata, SAS, Python; and experience administering studies in accordance with human subjects  regulations.

Please apply online at https://aprecruit.ucsf.edu/JPF03695. Applicants’ materials must list current and/or pending qualifications upon submission.

UC San Francisco seeks candidates whose experience, teaching, research, or community service has prepared them to contribute to our commitment to diversity and excellence. Preferred candidates will also have experience working with people experiencing homelessness or other vulnerable populations.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age or protected veteran status.