Minimum Qualifications
G18 - Bachelor's degree in Mathematics, Statistics, Engineering, Biostatistics, Public Health, Epidemiology, or a related degree. Related degrees may include Economics, Computer Science, Bio-informatics, Physics, Genetics, Social Sciences, Analytics, or Engineering, and two years of post-degree professional research experience in the appropriate field; OR a Master’s degree in one of the above fields and one year of such experience in the appropriate field.
G22 - Bachelor's degree in Mathematics, Statistics, Engineering, Biostatistics, Public Health, Epidemiology, or a related degree. Related degrees may include Economics, Computer Science, Bio-informatics, Physics, Genetics, Social Sciences, Analytics, or Engineering, and three years of post-degree professional research experience in the appropriate field; OR a Master’s degree in one of the above fields and two years of such experience in the appropriate field; OR a Doctorate in the appropriate field.
Preferred Qualifications: The preferred candidate will have experience in the development and management of a large database that is used to support a public health surveillance system. They will have knowledge of principles and methods of public health surveillance, and experience in applying the standard criteria for evaluating the effectiveness and usefulness of public health surveillance systems. They will additionally have experience in the following areas: an ability to link public health program knowledge to conceptual modeling, statistical analysis, and interpretation of results; evidence of excellent analytic, critical thinking, and scientific writing skills; a track record of presenting surveillance and research results to technical and non-technical audiences; intermediate or better proficiency in Statistical Analysis System (SAS) programming, Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and Word; and experience in spatial analysis using ArcView or other publicly-available software.
Duties Description
G18: The incumbent will support the Pregnancy Nutrition Surveillance System (PNSS) in the Division of Nutrition using customized datamarts (or extracts) from the new Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT)-friendly Woman Infant Children management information system (NYWIC). Under the direction of a Senior Research Scientist, the Research Scientist (RS) 2 will contribute to the implementation of analysis plans for assessing the reliability and validity of data extracted from the NYWIC system. The incumbent will contribute to the design, testing, and validation of longitudinal SAS datasets that will be used to generate monthly and annual summary statistics for WIC indicators at the State, county, and WIC local agency (LA) levels. The RS 2 will summarize statistics for priority indicators and prepare statistical reports that will be disseminated within the WIC program as well as through the Department of Health public website, Open Data NY Dashboards, and the Maternal Child Health Block Grant progress reports. The incumbent will work as part of a team and conduct evaluation studies and statistical analyses that address emerging data needs in the NYS WIC program and contribute to efforts to disseminate results using scientific manuscripts, written reports and oral presentations to reach both professional and lay audiences. The incumbent will also perform other duties as needed, including the review of external research study protocols, coordinating external data requests and supporting program outreach efforts through the conduct of statewide and local-level comparisons of WIC certification data with enrollment data from other means-tested (adjunctive eligibility) programs such as Medicaid, TANF and SNAP.
G22: The incumbent will support the Pregnancy Nutrition Surveillance System (PNSS) in the Division of Nutrition using customized datamarts (or extracts) from the new EBT-friendly WIC
management information system (NYWIC). Under the direction of a Senior Research Scientist, the Research Scientist (RS) 2 will contribute to the implementation of analysis plans for assessing the reliability and validity of data extracted from the NYWIC system. The incumbent will contribute to the design, testing and validation of longitudinal SAS datasets that will be used to generate monthly and annual summary statistics for WIC indicators at the State, county, and WIC local agency (LA) levels. The RS 2 will summarize statistics for priority indicators and prepare statistical reports that will be disseminated within the WIC program as well as through the Department of Health public website, Open Data NY Dashboards, and the Maternal Child Health Block Grant progress reports. The incumbent will work as part of a team and conduct evaluation studies and statistical analyses that address emerging data needs in the NYS WIC program and contribute to efforts to disseminate results using scientific manuscripts, written reports, and oral presentations to reach both professional and lay audiences. The incumbent will also perform other duties as needed, including the review of external research study protocols, coordinating external data requests, and supporting program outreach efforts through the conduct of statewide and local-level comparisons of WIC certification data with enrollment data from other means-tested (adjunctive eligibility) programs such as Medicaid, TANF and SNAP.
Additional Comments
Permanent, full-time, non-competitive appointment. Appointment level will be determined based on the qualifications of the selected candidate.
Candidates, when applying, please indicate how you possess a full scope of professional research experience that includes problem definition, planning research approaches, conducting studies, collecting and processing data, and interpreting and reporting findings.
This position may require travel throughout New York State including overnights to areas not served by public transportation.
We offer a work-life balance and a generous benefits package, worth 65% of salary, including:
- Holiday & Paid Time Off
- Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)
- Pension from New York State Employees’ Retirement System
- Shift & Geographic pay differentials
- Affordable Health Care options
- Family dental and vision benefits at no additional cost
- NYS Deferred Compensation plan
- Access to NY 529 and NY ABLE College Savings Programs, and U.S. Savings Bonds
- And many more...
For new State employees appointed to graded positions, the annual salary is the hiring rate (beginning of the Salary Range) of the position. Promotion salaries are calculated by the NYS Office of the State Comptroller in accordance with NYS Civil Service Law, OSC Payroll rules and regulations and negotiated union contracts.
The NYS Department of Health is committed to making New York a safer, healthier, and more equitable place to live. Understanding health equity, social determinants of health and health disparities is critical to accomplish our goal of eliminating health disparities. For more information on the NYS Department of Health’s Mission, Vision, Values and Strategic Plan, please visit: https://health.ny.gov/commissioner/index.htm