Position Details

Position Information

Recruitment/Posting Title	Research Specialist (Data Scientist)
Job Category	Staff & Executive - Research (Laboratory/Non-Laboratory)
Department	SEBS-NJ Agr Experiment Station
Overview	The New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES) is an integral component of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. The experiment station provides a diverse range of research, extension, and education programs that serve the people of New Jersey and the urban, suburban, and rural communities in which they live. Through its Cooperative Extension offices in all 21 New Jersey counties , dedicated 4-H agents, Extension specialists, Family & Community Health Sciences educators, and Agriculture and Natural Resources agents work to serve New Jersey residents in every area of the state. In addition, off-campus field stations and farms focus on research ranging from support for fisheries, agriculture and allied businesses to support for youth and teens, while several centers and institutes on the George H. Cook Campus at Rutgers–New Brunswick engage in world-class research to provide solutions for a range of issues faced by New Jersey residents. The NJAES Office of Research Analytics (ORA) provides advanced statistical, spatial, economic, and technological tools to projects and programs throughout the NJAES and broader university. The office has become a leader in developing data informatics platforms to support the NJAES mission of providing research, extension and education to its stakeholders through effective scientific communication and data visualization. The office strives to advance the knowledge and capabilities of data informatics as an important tool in bridging the gap between the scientific community and public stakeholders, and become a leader in their application across disciplines and areas of societal importance. ORA has led the development of innovative data informatics platforms across multiple research disciplines at Rutgers University including climate change, environmental science, marine and coastal sciences, urban planning, and agricultural policy, and has been successful in developing data informatics tools for various external stakeholders such as state agencies, NGOs, and foundations.
Posting Summary	Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey is seeking a Research Specialist (Data Scientist) for the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences’ New Jersey Agriculture Experiment Station (NJAES). Reporting to the Associate Director/Director of the NJAES Office of Research Analytics (ORA), the Data Scientist position is responsible for the data management, analysis, and visualization efforts within the office. This position is responsible for the data analysis efforts of the NJADAPT Program which focuses on developing new datasets, analysis efforts, and visualizations to support the various web applications utilizing interactive web-mapping, analytical tools, and data-driven snapshots/dashboards around the impacts of climate change on New Jersey. In addition, the Data Scientist position will also be a key team member on a grant-funded project from the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management developing datasets and analytical workflows to support the development of Hazard Management Plans at the State, County, and Municipal level.  Among the key duties of the position are the following The position will be responsible for the entire life cycle of data within the two programs and will have three primary focuses: data management, data analysis, and data visualization. Data management responsibilities will focus on developing a data management protocol to maintain and expand the large sets of spatial and tabular data that are utilized by the NJADAPT and OEM programs; ensuring that data remains up-to-date, has complete and appropriate metadata and documentation, procedures for integrating new datasets, and publication of datasets for use in applications and public access. Data analysis responsibilities will focus on the analytical efforts, both spatial and statistical, needed to develop new and potentially innovative datasets that provide insight into the potential impacts of climate change on various demographic, environmental, industry-specific, or critical infrastructure assets in New Jersey; develop documentation for these datasets and their methodologies; and perform research into new analysis techniques and domains to propose new avenues of data analysis for these program. Data visualization responsibilities will focus on developing appropriate data visualizations for both spatial and database-driven datasets that will be incorporated into various public informatic applications developed for these programs; ensuring that these visualizations support the communication of data to stakeholders to support understanding and decision-making. Works among a team of faculty and staff within these two programs and will be expected to participate in various project meetings, providing their knowledge and expertise to support project efforts, and present data and applications to various stakeholders. In addition, given the focus on supporting public informatic platforms, the Data Scientist position will also have the opportunity to train under ORA application development staff to develop their coding skills and allow for independent development of web mapping, reporting and dashboard applications as their skills allow. Oversees student or part-time employees as needed in support of projects.
Position Status	Full Time
Hours Per Week
Daily Work Shift
Work Arrangement	Consistent with the current application of Rutgers Policy 60.3.22, this position may be eligible for a hybrid work arrangement. The flexible work arrangements outlined in Rutgers Policy 60.3.22 are part of a pilot program that is effective September 1, 2022 through August 31, 2024. Therefore, there is no guarantee that this flexible work arrangement will continue beyond that date. Flexible work arrangements are not permanent, are subject to change or cancellation and contingent on the employee receiving approval in the FlexWork@RU Application System. Additional information may be found at https://futureofwork.rutgers.edu .
FLSA	Exempt
Grade	05
Position Salary
Annual Minimum Salary	66697.000
Annual Mid Range Salary	84422.000
Annual Maximum Salary	102147.000
Standard Hours	37.50
Union Description	Admin Assembly (MPSC)
Payroll Designation	PeopleSoft
Benefits	Rutgers offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees. For details, please go to http://uhr.rutgers.edu/benefits/benefits-overview . Rutgers also offers a benefit program to eligible full-time postdoctoral fellow students. For details, please go to https://finance.rutgers.edu/healthcare-risk/insurance/postdoctoral-health-insurance.
Seniority Unit
Terms of Appointment	Staff - 12 month
Position Pension Eligibility	ABP

Qualifications

Minimum Education and Experience	Master’s degree preferably in data science, public informatics, data informatics, mathematics, statistics or other related field; or Bachelor’s degree with at least 2 years experience working in data science related field.
Certifications/Licenses
Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities	Experience documenting datasets including the creation or metadata or methodology documents. Ability to work independently, develop analytical approaches and workplans, and utilize best practices for data creation and management. Experience using geographic information systems (GIS) and spatial datasets.
Preferred Qualifications	Advanced knowledge of ESRI ArcGIS platform including ArcGIS Pro, ArcGIS Online, and analytical toolkits such as Spatial Analyst and Spatial Statistics. Experience utilizing python scripting to automate GIS analytical workflows. Experience utilizing machine learning techniques to develop explanatory or predictive models for datasets. Experience working with datasets related to climate change, demographics, planning, and environmental data.
Equipment Utilized	ESRI ArcGIS software platform. Microsoft Office (Word, Powerpoint, Excel). Statistical software package (R, Stata, SAS, Matlab, etc.). A scripting language for data analysis/manipulation (Javascript, PHP , SQL, Python, R, Perl, etc.). Work/team management software such as Gitlab and Slack. SQL- based databases to query and utilize data for reporting or visualization needs.
Physical Demands and Work Environment
Special Conditions

Posting Details

Posting Number	23ST2279
Posting Open Date	08/23/2023
Special Instructions to Applicants
Regional Campus	Rutgers University-New Brunswick
Home Location Campus	Cook (RU-New Brunswick)
City	New Brunswick
State	NJ
Location Details

Pre-employment Screenings

All offers of employment are contingent upon successful completion of all pre-employment screenings.

Immunization Requirements

Under Policy 60.1.35 Immunization Policy for Rutgers Employees and Prospective Employees , Rutgers University requires all prospective employees to provide proof that they are vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to commencement of employment, unless the University has granted the individual a medical or religious exemption. Rutgers University may require certain prospective employees to receive an updated (bivalent) vaccine dose. Under Policy 100.3.1 Immunization Policy for Covered Individuals , if employment will commence during Flu Season, Rutgers University may require certain prospective employees to provide proof that they are vaccinated against Seasonal Influenza for the current Flu Season, unless the University has granted the individual a medical or religious exemption. Additional infection control and safety policies may apply. Prospective employees should speak with their hiring manager to determine which policies apply to the role or position for which they are applying. Failure to provide proof of vaccination for any required vaccines or obtain a medical or religious exemption from the University will result in rescission of a candidate’s offer of employment or disciplinary action up to and including termination.

Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

It is university policy to provide equal employment opportunity to all its employees and applicants for employment regardless of their race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partnership or civil union status, sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability status, liability for military service, protected veteran status, affectional or sexual orientation, atypical cellular or blood trait, genetic information (including the refusal to submit to genetic testing), or any other category protected by law. As an institution, we value diversity of background and opinion, and prohibit discrimination or harassment on the basis of any legally protected class in the areas of hiring, recruitment, promotion, transfer, demotion, training, compensation, pay, fringe benefits, layoff, termination or any other terms and conditions of employment. For additional information please see the Non-Discrimination Statement at the following web address: http://uhr.rutgers.edu/non-discrimination-statement