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*SUMMARY*

The primary purpose of the Research Assistant II position is to provide technical and coordination skills in carrying out the core research projects of the lab in the GI department.

*Ideal Candidate Statement *

The ideal candidate has strong experience in biomedical data curation, with expertise in Palantir Foundry, EHR data extraction, and HIPAA-compliant workflows. They are skilled in Python, R, and SQL for data processing and visualization, and have supported AI model development in HPC environments. Strong communication, precise record-keeping, and familiarity with clinical and molecular datasets are essential.

*JOB SPECIFIC COMPETENCIES*

*Data Collection (60% Effort)*

* Collect, organize, and preprocess multimodal data-including clinical, pathology, molecular, and imaging datasets-from internal and external sources for AI model development. Prior experience with Palantir Foundry is required.

* Perform data cleaning, de-identification, normalization, and annotation in accordance with institutional data governance and HIPAA compliance.

* Collaborate with clinical informatics and bioinformatics teams to extract structured and unstructured data from electronic health records (EHRs), clinical trial databases, and research repositories.

* Develop and maintain standardized data dictionaries, ontologies, and metadata documentation to ensure data quality, reproducibility, and interoperability.

* Implement quality control procedures to validate data integrity, completeness, and consistency prior to model training.

* Utilize scripting languages (e.g., Python, R, SQL) for data parsing, transformation, and visualization to support downstream model development.

*Research Project Computational Support (30% Effort)*

* Support the development, training, and evaluation of foundational AI models focused on gastrointestinal (GI) cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic response prediction. Prior experience with high-performance computing (HPC) is required.

* Work closely with computational scientists to prepare training and validation datasets and assist in model fine-tuning using advanced machine learning frameworks.

* Participate in hyperparameter optimization, performance benchmarking, and model validation using metrics such as accuracy, AUC, recall, precision, and F1 score.

* Contribute to the integration of clinical, genomic, and histopathological data to improve multimodal model performance.

* Assist in curating datasets for specific downstream applications, including biomarker discovery, drug response prediction, and clinical decision support tools.

* Document model development workflows and assist in drafting reports, figures, and presentations for internal meetings and potential scientific publications.

*Record keeping (10% Effort)*

* Maintain accurate, detailed records of experimental data and protocols in accordance with methods requested. This involves the use of computers to analyze, organize and plot data and for entry of data into databases.

*Communication*

* Must be able to understand and carry out instructions both verbal and written. Must be able to communicate results with clinicians and computational scientists.

* Must be able to read articles and references and develop step-by-step written procedures to conduct experiments as well as communicate this information to the supervisor and other lab members.

*Safety*

* Must maintain a clean and orderly workplace.

* Must have the ability and willingness to observe and comply with all institutional rules and OSHA regulations regarding biohazard and radiation safety.

*General requirements*

* Working knowledge of EHR data extraction and curation.

* Working knowledge of AI modeling.

Other duties as assigned

Salary Range - Min $45,000 Mid $56,500 Max $68,000

*MISSION STATEMENT*

The mission of The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center is to eliminate cancer in Texas, the nation, and the world through outstanding programs that integrate patient care, research and prevention, and through education for undergraduate and graduate students, trainees, professionals, employees and the public.

MD Anderson offers our employees:

- Paid employee medical benefits (zero premium) starting on first day for employees who work 30 or more hours per week

- Group Dental, Vision, Life, AD&D and Disability coverage

- Paid time off (PTO) and Extended Illness Bank (EIB) paid leave accruals

- Paid institutional holidays, wellness leave, childcare leave, and other paid leave programs

- Tuition Assistance Program after six months of service

- Teachers Retirement System defined-benefit pension plan and two voluntary retirement plans

- Employer paid life, AD&D and an illness-related reduced salary pay program

- Extensive wellness, recognition, fitness, employee health programs and employee resource groups.

*EDUCATION*

* Required: Bachelor's Degree Basic Science.

* Preferred: Master's Degree Basic Science.

* Preferred: Medical Degree

*WORK EXPERIENCE*

* Required: One year Scientific or experimental research work experience

* Required: No experience required with preferred degree.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center offers excellent [benefits](https://www.utsystem.edu/offices/employee-benefits/insurance-0/eligibility), including medical, dental, [paid time off](https://www.mdanderson.org/about-md-anderson/employee-resources/leave.html), [retirement](https://www.utsystem.edu/offices/employee-benefits/ut-retirement-program/voluntary-retirement-programs), tuition benefits, educational opportunities, and individual and team recognition.

This position may be responsible for maintaining the security and integrity of critical infrastructure, as defined in Section 113.001(2) of the Texas Business and Commerce Code and therefore may require routine reviews and screening. The ability to satisfy and maintain all requirements necessary to ensure the continued security and integrity of such infrastructure is a condition of hire and continued employment.

It is the policy of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by institutional policy or by federal, state, or local laws unless such distinction is required by law.[http://www.mdanderson.org/about-us/legal-and-policy/legal-statements/eeo-affirmative-action.html](http://www.mdanderson.org/about-us/legal-and-policy/legal-statements/eeo-affirmative-action.html)

Additional Information

* Requisition ID: 177044

* Employment Status: Full-Time

* Employee Status: Regular

* Work Week: Days

* Minimum Salary: US Dollar (USD) 45,000

* Midpoint Salary: US Dollar (USD) 56,500

* Maximum Salary : US Dollar (USD) 68,000

* FLSA: exempt and not eligible for overtime pay

* Fund Type: Soft

* Work Location: Onsite

* Pivotal Position: No

* Referral Bonus Available?: No

* Relocation Assistance Available?: Yes

\#LI-Onsite