Associate Principal Scientist, PharmaR&D

Passionate about precision medicine and advancing the healthcare industry?

Recent advancements in underlying technology have finally made it possible for AI to impact clinical care in a meaningful way. Tempus' proprietary platform connects an entire ecosystem of real-world evidence to deliver real-time, actionable insights to physicians, providing critical information about the right treatments for the right patients, at the right time.

Associate Principal Scientist, PharmaR&D

Boston, MA | New York City, NY | Chicago, IL

Are you passionate about using clinico-genomics to transform cancer therapeutic care?

Tempus is a technology company at the forefront of the expansion of multi-modal healthcare data generation and the application of artificial intelligence (AI) to fundamentally change cancer care.  Tempus is growing, and we are seeking exciting new talent to join the team.

Tempus' proprietary platform connects an entire ecosystem of real-world data to deliver real-time, actionable insights to physicians and drug developers.  As a Tempus employee you will have access to the world’s largest real-world patient clinical data set linked to claims, genetics, and digital pathology. Our data empowers researchers to better characterize and understand disease, and to drive better outcomes through precise, individualized care.

The Associate Principal Scientist, PharmaR&D will design, propose and execute research projects for Tempus’s top biopharmaceutical partners.  This role will require staying up to date in research and industry trends in oncology drug development to identify specific areas where the Tempus platform can provide impact to our partners portfolio. This role involves performing complex computational analyses and guiding algorithm development for advancing cancer precision medicine for patients across the Tempus network.  The ideal candidate will possess strong real-world data analytical skills, experience in applying machine learning and statistical models to big data, and the ability to communicate complex findings to various stakeholders.

Description

• Scientific Communication: Expert in navigating client interactions; Present highly technical results and methods clearly and meaningfully to diverse sets of external stakeholders

• Real World Data Expertise & Technical Oversight: Lead the derivation of complex real-world endpoints using extensive coding, demonstrating deep comprehension of Tempus clinical and molecular data structures and complexity, while also serving as an expert on the methodological nuances and limitations of real-world data.

• AI & LLM Innovation: Incorporate LLMs, agentic workflows, foundation models and other AI tools into day-to-day workflows to accelerate code development, discovery, documentation, review, and insight generation. 

• Collaboration:  Work with Research, Engineering & Data Science teams across Tempus’ expansive data science community to develop and deliver innovative computational solutions.

• Drug R&D: Partner with big pharma clients.  Become proficient in the clients’ strategies, drug modalities and pipeline to identify where the Tempus platform can add value.  

• Continuous Improvement: Stay current with industry trends, best practices, and advancements in computational oncology research. Apply this knowledge to enhance research methodologies and improve overall research quality 

Qualifications

• Education and experience: 

  • Experience at a Pharmaceutical company or in a client facing analytical role

  • Advanced education in epidemiology, biostatistics, data science, public health, or related fields, to the level of either:

    • PhD and additional 5+ years of working experience 

    • Masters and additional 7+ years of working experience

• Technical/Scientific Skills: 

  • Expert-level proficiency in observational real-world healthcare data, specifically in designing and implementing complex time-to-event methodologies (survival analysis).

  • Track record of leading RWD analytical studies from initial scoping through to publication or dissemination.

  • Proficient in R, Python, and SQL, and respective packages for computational biology. 

  • Strong understanding of cancer biology.

  • Strong peer-reviewed publication record.

  • Adherence to good software engineering practices (version control, documentation).

• Communication Skills: 

  • Expert in navigating client interactions; Present scientific findings clearly and meaningfully to diverse sets of external stakeholders. 

  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present complex information clearly and persuasively to diverse audiences. 

• Motivated: Excel in a dynamic environment, seamlessly adapting to shifting priorities, and self motivated to explore portfolio related opportunities. 

Preferred Skillsets/Background

• Goal orientation, self motivation, and drive to make a positive impact in healthcare.

• Previous experience working with large transcriptome and NGS data sets.

• Proficiency applying machine learning, statistical modeling, LLM-based coding assistants (e.g., Copilot, Cursor) and agentic frameworks to support data analysis.

• Experience in clinical trial design (particularly Phase II-III) in the clinical development space.

• Extensive proficiency with claims, EHR, or registry data.

• High-level familiarity with NCCN guidelines and the ability to interpret real-world outcomes within the context of the current oncology standard of care.

• Significant experience analyzing biomarker, genomic, or other high-dimensional molecular data alongside clinical datasets.

• Experience with: Package development,  tidyverse, Git, matplotlib, Pandas, Jupyter Notebook

CHI: $155,000-$200,000 USD

NYC/SF: $165,000-$210,000 USD

The expected salary range above is applicable if the role is performed from Illinois and may vary for other locations (California, Colorado, New York). Actual salary may vary based on qualifications and experience. Tempus offers a full range of benefits, which may include incentive compensation, restricted stock units, medical and other benefits depending on the position.

We are an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.