Associate Scientist, Health Data

About the Company

Variant Bio is advancing potentially life-saving treatments by researching the genetics of people who show unusual health-related traits. By focusing on communities with distinctive genetic structures and exceptional phenotypes, the company has uncovered new human genetic evidence that can support therapeutic programs across multiple disease areas. Its proprietary Inference platform combines deep phenotyping, multi-omic data, statistical genetics, and AI/ML methods to discover and validate therapeutic targets. Variant Bio also has strategic collaborations with Novo Nordisk and Boehringer Ingelheim, reflecting the strength of its platform and helping move new programs forward with experienced development support.

Ethics is a central part of the organization’s approach. In 2020, the company introduced a benefit-sharing initiative that commits meaningful benefits to the communities it works with around the world.

Role Overview

The Health Data team transforms data collected in the field from international partner cohorts into standardized, analysis-ready datasets that support genetic target discovery. This role is suited to someone who enjoys working with messy real-world data and wants to create dependable, reproducible systems that improve data quality and comparability across studies, data types, collaborators, and collection sites.

In this position, you will take ownership of curation, quality control, and harmonization for multi-omic, survey, biochemistry, and clinical datasets as they are received from field sites worldwide. You will help define the standards and pipelines that ensure the data remains reliable at scale. Strong scientific judgment is important, especially the ability to recognize how recruitment, sampling, batching, or measurement choices may affect bias. Curiosity and resourcefulness are valued along with technical capability. The role also offers room to progress from executing and adjusting existing workflows toward owning pipelines and contributing to downstream analysis.

Key Responsibilities

• Standardize, clean, and reconcile multi-omic, survey, biochemistry, and clinical data from partner cohorts and international field sites so that differences across platforms, studies, and locations are aligned.
• Create reproducible quality-control checks, including validation rules and anomaly detection, to surface problematic records and support root-cause investigation and longer-term fixes.
• Help shape study design, sample selection, and randomization approaches for multi-omic data generation.
• Identify data problems early and coordinate with the internal team responsible for data collection to correct issues at the source.
• Operate and modify ETL/ELT workflows that bring in field data, with the expectation that ownership of these pipelines can grow over time.
• Build analysis-ready datasets, perform analyses and quality reviews, and document the work clearly for downstream target-discovery use.
• Assist with occasional wet-lab activities to support high-quality data generation, such as aliquoting, protocol evaluation, and sample quality control.

Qualifications

• MS or PhD in epidemiology, biostatistics, genetics, bioinformatics, data science, public health, computational biology, or a related discipline; alternatively, a bachelor’s degree plus at least 2 years of relevant professional experience.
• Hands-on experience with large, imperfect real-world datasets such as multi-omic, survey, biochemistry, or clinical data, including finding quality issues before analysis and tracing them back to their source.
• Working knowledge of R, Python, or a similar scripting/programming language.
• Understanding of genomic study design, including awareness of how recruitment, sampling, batching, or measurement decisions can create bias or confounding and what conclusions the data can support.
• Previous wet-lab exposure in molecular biology or a related setting.
• Curious, adaptable, and comfortable solving unfamiliar problems with help from a cross-functional team.
• Strong attention to detail, disciplined record-keeping, and the ability to juggle multiple workstreams across studies.
• Clear communicator who collaborates well in an international, cross-functional environment.
• Must be able to work onsite in the Seattle office at least three days per week.

Preferred Experience

• Building and managing data pipelines, with familiarity in workflow tools such as Nextflow, databases such as SQL, Git-based version control, and HPC or cloud environments like AWS or Slurm.
• Using REDCap or a similar electronic data capture platform.
• Working with data harmonization approaches such as common data elements, common data models, or FAIR principles, including metadata schemas and data dictionaries.
• Handling clinical data such as biochemistry, anthropometrics, and health history.
• Experience generating or working with multi-omic data such as proteomic, transcriptomic, or metabolomic data, and understanding how such evidence helps prioritize therapeutic targets.
• Exposure to nucleic acid extraction and QC, qPCR, or ELISA assays.
• Experience with human-subjects research, IRB or ethics workflows, or international multi-site collaborations.
• Familiarity with biomedical coding systems and ontologies such as ICD-9/10, Phecodes, and HPO for phenotype definition and harmonization.

Compensation and Benefits

The anticipated annual base salary for this position is $100,000 to $150,000, plus up to 10% bonus and an options package. Total compensation is expected to be up to $110,000 to $165,000, plus equity options. The final salary depends on the role’s responsibilities and the candidate’s knowledge, skills, and experience.

• Market-competitive pay with eligibility to participate in company equity.
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage with 100% of employee premiums paid by the company; dependents can be added for an additional cost.
• Flexible paid time off and company holidays.
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match.
• Support for learning and professional development.
• Collaborative, mission-focused environment.
• Opportunity to make an early, visible impact at a growing biotech company.

Additional Information

Applicants who do not meet every qualification are still encouraged to apply if they are excited about the role.

Variant Bio is an equal opportunity employer and maintains a workplace that values diversity. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.