The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Team

The Institute for Disease Modeling (IDM) is an embedded research institute within the Gates Foundation, supporting global efforts to eradicate infectious diseases and achieve permanent improvements in health. We develop, use, and share computational modeling tools, and promote quantitative decision-making through robust mathematical and statistical modeling. The IDM team comprises both research scientists and software engineers. IDM has a bold and important vision, and you will play a key role in realizing that vision through the impact you have as a scientist, a strategic thinker, and a partner to grantmaking colleagues across the Foundation.

* This is a limited-term position for 9 months. Relocation to Seattle will not be provided.

* Application deadline: Friday, February 21 (11:59 PM PST)

Your Role

As a Senior Research Scientist, you will lead & support efforts to analyze data and develop models of vaccine-preventable disease transmission in one or more LMICs (Low & Middle Income Countries). You will report to the Senior Research Manager for Vaccine-Preventable Diseases. Your work will focus on modeling the spatiotemporal dynamics of disease transmission – executing analyses that reveal important features of disease transmission in our priority LMIC settings, developing robust methods for calibrating complex models to reproduce these features, and designing simulation-based workflows to explore the consequences of different strategies for disease control and elimination.

You will focus on measles and/or polio transmission and may engage on other priority VPDs as opportunities arise. You will have opportunities to collaborate with global immunization stakeholders, country health programs, other IDM team members, and/or external researchers. You may also explore innovations in data collection and analysis that can be used to improve understanding of disease epidemiology and estimate the impact of vaccine delivery interventions.

What You’ll Do

• Gather, analyze, and model data on vaccine-preventable disease transmission in LMICs. Identify features, structures, and relationships in these data that provide robust targets for model calibration and suggest opportunities for improved disease control.
• Develop and lead policy-focused research collaborations between IDM, Foundation grantmaking teams, and local actors in LMIC disease control programs.
• Work directly with software engineers to advance IDM’s core disease modeling software packages and simulation workflow infrastructure.
• Build relationships with new external collaborators and work closely with them to acquire data, design impactful research questions, and develop models to explore disease control strategies.
• Review scientific and grey literature on disease transmission modeling and connections to control interventions, to identify interesting questions, define novel analyses, and inform the strategic direction of VPD modeling research at IDM.
• Write summaries of results to be used in policy recommendations, white papers, and scientific publications
• Write research articles and conference presentations communicating projects and results to the scientific community
• Present work to key stakeholders internal and external to the foundation, as well as research audiences.

Your Experience

• PhD in science or in a quantitative field (e.g. Statistics, Biostatistics, Applied Mathematics, Physics, Economics); or PhD in health fields with addition of significant quantitative experience (e.g. Epidemiology, Public Health, Health Services, Global Health); or Masters or Medical degree with strong quantitative experience.
• Experience communicating important policy-relevant results to key local and global stakeholders
• Demonstrated experience executing complex projects involving multiple individuals, stakeholders, and timelines
• Demonstrated experience building research collaborations comprised of policymakers and researchers, from concept development through delivery of results
• Working knowledge of data sources relevant to spatiotemporal disease modeling: disease surveillance, immunization surveys, demographic projections, raster data, shapefiles, etc.
• Proficiency in at least one data-analysis or scripting language (e.g. R, Python).
• Knowledge of a variety of statistical methods and application to data, particularly as pertaining to inference of disease dynamics and calibration of dynamic models
• Ability to initiate, organize, and manage research projects and clearly communicate analysis results to diverse audiences
• Demonstrated ability to work productively independently and as part of a team

• Must be able to legally work in the country where this position is located without visa sponsorship.
• The salary range for this role is $204,600 to $317,100 USD. We recognize high-wage market differences in Seattle and Washington D.C., where our offices are located. The range for this role in these locations is $222,900 to $345,500 USD. As a mission-driven organization, we strive to balance competitive pay with our mission. New-hire salaries are typically between the range minimum and the salary range midpoint. Actual placement in the range will depend on a candidate’s job-related skills, experience, and expertise, as evaluated during the interview process.

Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Candidate Accommodations

If you require assistance due to a disability in the application or recruitment process, please submit a request here.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — and we support this diversity through all our employment practices.

All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements