Statistician in pharmacoepidemiology - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The Department of Medicine, Solna, is one of the largest departments at Karolinska Institutet. The department consists of several divisions that are separated into different research groups. The core activities of the department are research, doctoral education and undergraduate education for medical and biomedical students. The research has three main profiles: allergy, cardiovascular medicine and inflammatory diseases.

Division
The pharmacoepidemiology research team, led by Björn Pasternak, MD, associate professor, is devoted to research questions in drug safety and effectiveness that have a strong potential to make a difference in clinical practice. The team is based at the Clinical Epidemiology Division at the Department of Medicine Solna. The division has more than 100 employees/affiliates and is headed by professor Johan Askling, MD, who is also the leader of the larger research group of which the pharmacoepidemiology research team is part.
The dynamic pharmacoepidemiology research team is currently composed of five people who share a burning desire to help inform evidence-based decisions in clinical practice through high-quality pharmacoepidemiology on the basis of nationwide health care registers and clinical databases. We have ongoing collaboration with groups in Denmark, Norway, the US, as well as at Karolinska Institutet; are supported by several public funding sources; and, have an outstanding publication track record, which can be found here: http://ki.se/en/people/bjopas

Duties
A rare opportunity has now arisen to join the pharmacoepidemiology research team. We are looking for a driven statistician who wishes to pursue pharmacoepidemiologic research, has a strong interest in targeting clinical drug safety and effectiveness questions through state-of-the-art methods, and longs to be part of a vibrant environment at one of the world’s most prestigious medical universities. This position is intended to further strengthen and expand on our leading research in the field. The primary responsibility of the statistician is advanced data handling and statistical analysis in register-based pharmacoepidemiology research projects conducted by the team. We are currently running several projects; the statistician will be primarily involved with applied projects within our large-scale research programs in the fields of effectiveness and safety of diabetes medications (e.g.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30429124; https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30527909) and pediatric drug safety (e.g. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30685366). Further, the position can be combined with applied method development projects, own research or research education in pharmacoepidemiology, and formal supervision of junior researchers.

Entry requirements
For this position, a master-level academic degree in statistics and 3 or more years’ experience with register-based research projects in the field of pharmacoepidemiology and clinical epidemiology are required. Applicants with another academic degree combined with relevant experience may also be considered.
The successful applicant is an expert user of SAS, R or similar statistical software; has documented experience with use of statistical methods common in pharmacoepidemiology; has substantial skills in the design and conduct of large-scale pharmacoepidemiology studies using linked registers; and, has experience from reporting of such studies in medical journals. A publication track record will be considered a prerequisite, with first-authorships and publications in major journals given additional credit.
A PhD will be considered a strong merit. Additional merits that will be considered include experience with analysis of register data from more than one and relevant working experience in different sectors such as public and private. Experience from several different therapeutic areas will be recognized as an asset.
Important personal merits include flexibility, independency, strong collaborative and interpersonal skills, and attention to detail. Fluency in English and experience with writing scientific texts in English are prerequisites. Proficiency in Swedish is considered a strong asset.

Bases of assessment
The qualifications of the applicants, as described above, will be evaluated on an overall basis, stressing personal merits. Preference will be given to applicants who can demonstrate a burning desire to pursue pharmacoepidemiologic research.

Application process
The application is to be submitted in Varbi recruitment system and must contain the following documents in English: 

• A personal letter (no longer than one A4 page, font size 11 or larger), explaining the applicant’s reasons for wanting to pursue this position; her/his particular interest in pharmacoepidemiology; specification of skills and personal qualities that may contribute to the successful execution of pharmacoepidemiologic research project; and a note on when the applicant could start the position.
• A curriculum vitae with particular focus on skills and competencies of relevance to this position. Please include names and contact details of two reference persons; as well as information on your professional relationship with these persons.
• A copy of degree certificates and associated certificates.

At Karolinska Institutet a 6-month trial period is required for all permanent appointments.