Research Scientist, Senior

Role Overview

The REGAL (Research to Eliminate Global Cancer Disparities) team at Duke University seeks a Senior Research Scientist to serve as a key scientific contributor within a high-impact, data-intensive research program focused on cancer health equity.

This role is designed for an experienced and analytically rigorous investigator who combines strong methodological expertise with the ability to execute and drive complex research projects forward.

Core Responsibilities

Scientific Contribution & Project Advancement

The Senior Research Scientist will contribute substantively to advancing rigorous and impactful science within the REGAL program by helping to define research questions, develop analytic strategies, and ensure that projects are aligned with overarching program priorities.

• Synthesizing emerging evidence
• Identifying opportunities for new grants and analyses
• Extending existing work
• Contributing to the intellectual development of projects within the program’s strategic framework

Advanced Data Management & Analytical Execution

The Senior Research Scientist will lead and execute complex data management and analytical workflows across multiple projects, ensuring data integrity, reproducibility, and methodological rigor.

• Developing and implementing data pipelines
• Overseeing data cleaning and harmonization
• Conducting advanced statistical and computational analyses using large-scale and high-dimensional datasets

The role requires deep expertise in epidemiologic and biostatistical methods, including causal inference, survival modeling, longitudinal modeling, and approaches for integrating multi-level data such as genomic data, clinical data, and social determinants of health.

Manuscripts, Grants & Scientific Productivity

The Senior Research Scientist will contribute to driving the program scientific output by leading the development of manuscripts, abstracts, and grant proposals.

Project Leadership & Coordination

The Senior Research Scientist will lead the day-to-day scientific execution of projects, coordinating across team members to ensure timely and high-quality completion of deliverables.

Mentorship & Team Development

The Senior Research Scientist will provide mentorship and oversight to postdoctoral fellows, research analysts, and trainees.

Who This Role Is Designed For

This role is ideal for candidates who have a PhD in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, or a related quantitative field with substantial postdoctoral or equivalent experience; demonstrate advanced expertise in statistical modeling, data management, and computational analysis; have strong experience in cancer epidemiology, genomics, and/or social determinants of health; have a strong track record of leading manuscripts and contributing to grant development; are comfortable working both independently and collaboratively; and are highly organized, detail-oriented, and committed to rigorous, reproducible science.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience working with large-scale or high-dimensional datasets; familiarity with causal inference methods and/or machine learning approaches; strong proficiency in R, SAS, STATA, Python or similar analytical tools; experience mentoring trainees or junior analysts.