Senior Scientist - Bursky Public Health
About the role
The Healthier Futures Lab in the School of Public Health is seeking a Research Scientist to serve as a core scientific contributor and strategic partner in a growing, high-impact research agenda. The Healthier Futures Lab sits at the intersection of population health science and the study of how public health knowledge is produced and used and aims to reshape how the field thinks about evidence, rigor, and real-world impact. The lab holds funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies, NIH, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and World Health Organization, and operates across multiple countries and sectors.
Primary Duties & Responsibilities
Leads the design of population health studies across the lab’s research portfolio. The lab’s focus is primarily quantitative although some familiarity with mixed methods may be helpful.
Develops research protocols, data analytic plans, and measurement approaches appropriate to each project’s scientific questions and population focus.
Contributes to the conceptual and theoretical framing of research projects.
Advises and supports other lab members on methodological questions and data analytical decisions.
Serves as scientific lead for designated lab initiatives, coordinating contributors across the project.
Conducts advanced statistical and data analyses using relevant software (e.g., R, Stata, Python).
Manages and documents datasets in accordance with ethical and reproducibility standards.
Synthesizes findings across projects and contributes to cross-project learning and evidence integration.
Presents research at conferences, seminars, and funder convenings.
Supports the lab’s commitment to open science and public health translation.
Provides mentorship and day-to-day guidance to graduate research assistants and junior lab members on research methods, scientific writing, and professional development.
Collaborates closely with the lab director and external collaborators to advance shared scientific goals.
Participates in lab meetings and contributes to a culture of intellectual rigor and collegial inquiry.
Required Qualifications
PhD or terminal degree in public health, epidemiology, social sciences, or a closely related field.
Postdoctoral training or equivalent research experience of at least 2 years in public health, social epidemiology, population mental health, or public health.
Experience contributing to externally funded research projects, including grant writing and IRB management.
Experience mentoring junior researchers or graduate students.
Track record of scientific dissemination including conference presentations and policy engagement.
Ability to execute independent research from conception through dissemination.
Comfort working within an interdisciplinary, team-based research environment.
Commitment to rigorous, reproducible, and ethical research practice.
Demonstrated experience conducting independent empirical research, including peer-reviewed publication.
Proficiency in quantitative data analysis and statistical computing languages (e.g., R, Stata, Python).
Preferred Qualifications
Program management of large-scale projects.
Experience contributing to externally funded research projects, including grant writing and IRB management.
Experience mentoring junior researchers or graduate students.
Track record of scientific dissemination including conference presentations and policy engagement.
Ability to execute independent research from conception through dissemination.
Comfort working within an interdisciplinary, team-based research environment.
Commitment to rigorous, reproducible, and ethical research practice.
Demonstrated experience conducting independent empirical research, including peer-reviewed publication.
Proficiency in quantitative data analysis and statistical computing languages (e.g., R, Stata, Python).