Postdoctoral Associate (Postdoctoral Associate - UF Sports Analytics Lab)

About the role

The UF Sports Analytics Lab in the Department of Sport Management, College of Health & Human Performance, at the University of Florida invites applications for a full-time Postdoctoral Associate in Sports Analytics.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement applied sports analytics projects for UF varsity teams and the Athletic Director’s office, with an emphasis on on-field performance (e.g., player and team evaluation, game strategy, scouting, workload and injury risk, practice planning).
• Contribute to sport business and operations analytics projects as needed (e.g., ticketing, fan engagement, and scheduling).
• Build and maintain data pipelines and models using R, Python, SQL, and cloud computing resources, following best practices for reproducible research and version control (GitHub).
• Supervise and mentor undergraduate and masters student analysts working on projects across multiple teams and units.
• Communicate findings clearly to coaches, staff, and other stakeholders, and contribute to publications, presentations, and grant proposals emerging from lab projects.
• Lead and co-author scholarly publications and conference presentations arising from lab projects, in collaboration with the Lab Director and student analysts.
• Support the educational mission of the lab through mentoring and occasional guest lectures or workshops in sports analytics (no formal classroom teaching load) or courses related to sport performance analytics if needed.

Qualifications

• PhD in statistics, data science, business analytics, sports analytics, operations research, computer science, or a closely related quantitative field, earned by July 1, 2026.
• Proficiency in R and Python for data analysis and modeling.
• Working knowledge of SQL and relational databases.
• Experience with cloud computing environments (e.g., AWS, GCP, or Azure).
• Demonstrated use of GitHub or similar tools for version control and collaborative code development.
• Evidence of high-quality research (e.g., publications, preprints, reports, or comparable outputs).
• Strong written and oral communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience providing analytics or performance analysis support to college or professional teams, sport organizations, or athletic departments.
• Experience supervising or mentoring student analysts or research assistants.
• Familiarity with sport-relevant methods such as analysis of tracking data, player and team evaluation metrics, win probability and decision models, scheduling/optimization, or injury and workload models.
• Experience with modern data engineering and analytics tools (e.g., APIs and ETL/ELT workflows, dashboarding tools such as Shiny/Dash/Power BI, CI/CD or automated pipelines).
• Experience working with sensitive or restricted data and knowledge of data governance and ethics in sport.

Salary and Appointment Terms

This is a full-time, 12-month, non-tenure-track faculty appointment as a Postdoctoral Associate, based on the University of Florida’s main campus in Gainesville, Florida. The appointment is renewable annually for up to three years, contingent on performance, need, and funding. The anticipated salary range is $60,000–$70,000 per year, commensurate with qualifications and experience and meeting or exceeding UF’s minimum for postdoctoral associates.

Department of Sport Management

The Department of Sport Management (SPM) is committed to excellence and impact through: (a) innovative, socially impactful research; (b) preparation and training of future industry and academic professionals; (c) community engagement; and (d) stewardship of the future of sport. The department includes approximately 8 instructional and 8 tenured or tenure-track faculty, supported by award-winning advisory and administrative staff. Across residential and online programs, SPM serves more than 900 students (about 550 undergraduate majors, 316 master’s students, and 16 PhD students). The Sport Management online program was one of the first in the country and remains a thriving part of the department. Additional information about the department’s research and teaching activities is available at https://hhp.ufl.edu/about/departments/spm/.

The University of Florida

The University of Florida (UF) is one of the top-ranked public universities in the United States and is Florida’s oldest and largest land-grant university. UF is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU) and enrolls approximately 61,000 students annually across 16 colleges and more than 200 research, service, and education centers, bureaus, and institutes. UF reported more than $1 billion in research expenditures in the last fiscal year, reflecting a vibrant culture of interdisciplinary scholarship. UF’s main campus is located in Gainesville, a city of approximately 141,000 residents in North-Central Florida. Gainesville offers abundant outdoor recreation opportunities, a strong public school system, and convenient access to both the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coast. The University of Florida is an Equal Opportunity Employer.