Research Statistician

About the role

Ocean Associates Inc. (OAI) is seeking a Research Statistician to support the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service at the Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC), Fish Ecology Division, in Seattle, WA. OAI is a Virginia corporation established in 2003 that provides consulting and technical services to U.S. government, NGOs, international organizations, and the private sector, specializing in scientific program and project management, strategic planning, professional and technical services, and stakeholder engagement. The Fish Ecology Division conducts research on marine and anadromous species in the Pacific Northwest and California to support management under the Magnuson‑Stevens Act and the Endangered Species Act, improve aquaculture, and increase seafood safety, using an ecosystem approach. This position will support NWFSC staff and interdisciplinary teams to conduct ecological research on species NOAA is mandated to manage.

Responsibilities

• Provide statistical analyses to inform management decisions.
• Statistically analyze spatial and temporal variability in processes experienced by migrating salmon in river systems, especially to understand survival and migration patterns through hydropower systems and through their life cycles.
• Analyze and generate relationships between fish responses (e.g., density, growth, survival, migration rate) and explanatory variables (e.g., environmental or ecological conditions, habitat metrics, management actions, etc.) in particular life stages.
• Develop novel probabilistic mathematical and simulation models that seek to represent unique and complex ecological and behavioral processes with modern statistical methods.
• Provide statistical support for other researchers during study design and analysis.
• Organize and curate ecological datasets relevant to mark‑recapture modeling needs.
• Document and share reproducible research workflows and analytical protocols to ensure scientific transparency and peer collaboration.
• Publish reports and scientific papers, and present results at regional and national meetings and scientific conferences, as needed.
• Assist with field collection of fish and environmental data in freshwater, estuarine, and nearshore marine environments of the West Coast region, as needed (may involve riding in vehicles and/or boats).

Requirements

• Ph.D. degree from an accredited college or university in Statistics, Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, or a related field with a strong quantitative emphasis.
• Strong quantitative background with extensive coursework in mathematics, statistical theory, probability, experimental design, and applied statistics.
• Knowledge and experience in Bayesian statistics and mark‑recapture methods strongly preferred.
• Six or more years of experience related to the task order, with experience in ecological data applications preferred.
• Familiarity with the species and habitats managed by NOAA Fisheries in the West Coast region preferred but not required.
• Excellent verbal and written communication, and experience writing reports and publishing peer‑reviewed articles.
• Strong quantitative skills including extensive experience in statistical modeling and data analysis, and thorough understanding of core concepts of probability and statistical theory.
• Extensive experience conducting analyses and coding in R, experience with Stan and JAGS, and experience with open‑science concepts.
• Strong computational skills, including ability to manipulate large environmental datasets within a command‑line environment (e.g., Linux/shell scripting) to support statistical workflows.
• Familiarity interpreting or interfacing with C or C++ code within a scientific modeling context.
• Familiarity with common software including Google Suite and Microsoft Office.
• Ability to manage workload, stay organized, and produce high‑quality work products efficiently.
• Ability to work both independently and on interdisciplinary teams.

Pay

Salary, commensurate with experience, between $45.00 – $50.00+ per hour. This is a full‑time position with benefits.