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Job Description
The Department of Emergency Medicine has an outstanding opportunity for a Scientific Director to join their team.
About this Opportunity
Reporting to the Vice Chair of Research, the Scientific Director serves as a senior scientific leader within the Department of Emergency Medicine, providing advanced research expertise and methodological guidance across a diverse portfolio of clinical and translational research projects. Working closely with faculty investigators, trainees, and departmental leadership, this position supports all phases of the research process, including study design, implementation, data analysis, interpretation of findings, manuscript development, and grant proposal preparation. The role ensures methodological rigor, promotes reproducible research practices, enhances grant competitiveness, and contributes to the successful execution and dissemination of federally funded and investigator\-initiated research initiatives.
The Department conducts its activities at the Harborview Medical Center (HMC), UW Medical Center\-Montlake, UW Medical Center\- Northwest, with research sites located at multiple sites across Seattle. This position requires in\-person presence .
Key Responsibilities
40% – Scientific Leadership and Research Development
- Provide senior\-level scientific and methodological leadership across departmental research activities, including study design, protocol development, analytic planning, data analysis, interpretation of findings, and oversight of complex clinical and translational research projects to ensure scientific rigor and reproducibility.
25% – Grant Development and Scholarly Dissemination
- Support the development of competitive grant proposals and contribute to the preparation, publication, and dissemination of research findings through peer\-reviewed manuscripts, scientific presentations, reports, and other scholarly products.
20% – Research Strategy and Cross\-Functional Collaboration
- Partner with departmental leadership, faculty investigators, Research Operations, Data Science, and research informatics teams to advance strategic research priorities, align scientific objectives with operational resources, and support innovative research initiatives and collaborative programs.
15% – Mentorship and Research Training
- Mentor and provide consultation to faculty, fellows, residents, research staff, and trainees on research methodology, study design, statistical analysis, protocol development, reproducible research practices, and scholarly dissemination, while providing scientific guidance to collaborative project teams.
Required Qualifications
To be considered for this opportunity, your application must demonstrate that you meet both the minimum and additional qualifications listed below. Equivalent education and/or experience may substitute for minimum qualifications except where there are legal requirements such as licensure, certification, or registration.
Minimum Qualifications
Applicants who do not meet these qualifications WILL NOT be forwarded to the Hiring Manager.
- PhD, DrPH, ScD, or equivalent doctoral degree in epidemiology, biostatistics, public health, clinical investigation, biomedical sciences, or a closely related field.
- Minimum seven years of progressively responsible postdoctoral research experience in an academic medical center, research institution, or similarly complex research environment.
Additional Qualifications
- Demonstrated expertise in advanced study design, biostatistical methods, epidemiologic methods, and reproducible research practices.
- Record of peer\-reviewed scholarly publications and scientific dissemination activities.
- Experience supporting federally funded research projects and grant proposal development.
- Proficiency with statistical and data analysis software such as R, SAS, Stata, or similar platforms.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple complex research projects simultaneously.
- Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in emergency medicine, acute care, clinical, or translational research environments.
- Experience serving as Principal Investigator, Co\-Investigator, or senior scientific lead on federally funded research.
- Experience mentoring faculty, fellows, residents, or trainees in academic research settings.
- Experience contributing to institutional research strategy, infrastructure development, or interdisciplinary collaborations.
- Familiarity with AI\-assisted research tools and advanced data science applications in clinical or translational research.
Compensation, Benefits and Position Details
Pay Range Minimum:
$104,172\.00 annual
Pay Range Maximum:
$168,000\.00 annual
Other Compensation:
*
Benefits:
For information about benefits for this position, visit https://www.washington.edu/jobs/benefits\-for\-uw\-staff/
Shift:
First Shift (United States of America)
Temporary or Regular?
This is a regular position
FTE (Full\-Time Equivalent):
100\.00%
Union/Bargaining Unit:
Not Applicable
About the UW
Working at the University of Washington provides a unique opportunity to change lives – on our campuses, in our state and around the world.
UW employees bring their boundless energy, creative problem\-solving skills and dedication to building stronger minds and a healthier world. In return, they enjoy outstanding benefits, opportunities for professional growth and the chance to work in an environment known for its diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits and natural beauty.
Our Commitment
The University of Washington is committed to fostering an inclusive, respectful and welcoming community for all. As an equal opportunity employer, the University considers applicants for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, citizenship, sex, pregnancy, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability, or veteran status consistent with UW Executive Order No. 81 .
To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at 206\-543\-6450 or [email protected] .
Applicants considered for this position will be required to disclose if they are the subject of any substantiated findings or current investigations related to sexual misconduct at their current employment and past employment. Disclosure is required under Washington state law .
Salary Context
This $104K-$168K range is in the lower quartile for Research Scientist roles in our dataset (median: $183K across 109 roles with salary data).
Role Details
About This Role
Research Scientists push the boundaries of what AI can do. They design experiments, develop novel architectures, publish papers, and translate research breakthroughs into production capabilities. This is where the fundamental advances happen, from attention mechanisms to diffusion models to reasoning chains.
The work is intellectually demanding and often ambiguous. You might spend months on an approach that doesn't pan out. The best research scientists combine deep mathematical intuition with engineering pragmatism. They know when to go deep on theory and when to run experiments. They read papers voraciously and can spot incremental contributions from genuine breakthroughs.
Across the 3,823 AI roles we're tracking, Research Scientist positions make up 3% of the market. At University Of Washington, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
What the Work Looks Like
A typical week includes: reading and discussing recent papers with your team, designing and running experiments on multi-GPU clusters, analyzing results and iterating on hypotheses, writing up findings for internal review or publication, and collaborating with engineering teams to productionize promising results. The ratio of thinking to coding is higher than in engineering roles.
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
Skills in Demand for This Role
PhD strongly preferred for most roles. Deep expertise in a specific area (NLP, computer vision, reinforcement learning, multimodal) is expected. PyTorch is the standard. Publication track record matters. Strong mathematical foundations in linear algebra, probability, optimization, and information theory are assumed.
Beyond the fundamentals, companies value experience with large-scale distributed training, novel architecture design, and the ability to bridge theory and practice. Understanding of current frontier topics (reasoning, multimodal, long-context, alignment) is essential. Code quality matters more than many researchers expect. Labs want researchers who can implement their ideas cleanly.
Strong research postings specify the research area, mention the team you'd join, and describe the problems they're working on. They often list recent publications from the team. Vague 'AI research' postings without specifics usually mean the company wants to sound impressive but doesn't have a real research agenda.
Compensation Benchmarks
Research Scientist roles pay a median of $223,400 based on 280 positions with disclosed compensation. Senior-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $227,400. This role's midpoint ($136K) sits 39% below the category median. Disclosed range: $104K to $168K.
Across all AI roles, the market median is $200,100. Top-quartile compensation starts at $253,500. The 90th percentile reaches $307,500. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Engineering Manager ($275,000) and AI Safety ($274,200). By seniority level: Entry: $97,880; Mid: $165,000; Senior: $227,400; Director: $247,800; VP: $250,000.
University Of Washington AI Hiring
University Of Washington has 2 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across Research Scientist, AI Agent Developer. Based in Seattle, WA, US. Compensation range: $142K - $168K.
Location Context
AI roles in Seattle pay a median of $227,400 across 1,084 tracked positions. That's 14% above the national median.
Career Path
Common paths into Research Scientist roles include PhD Student, Research Engineer, Postdoc.
From here, career progression typically leads toward Research Lead, Distinguished Scientist, VP of Research.
The PhD is the entry point for most paths. Choose your advisor and research area carefully since they'll define your first industry position. Publish consistently, contribute to open-source projects in your area, and build relationships at conferences. Industry research offers better compensation and compute resources than academia, but the pressure to show product impact is real.
What to Expect in Interviews
Research interviews are multi-stage: a research talk (present your best paper), technical deep-dives on your methodology, and often a 'research proposal' exercise where you design an experiment to test a hypothesis. Coding rounds test implementation ability alongside theoretical knowledge. Be prepared to implement a paper from scratch and discuss the design choices the authors made. Strong candidates can critique papers constructively and identify gaps in experimental methodology.
When evaluating opportunities: Strong research postings specify the research area, mention the team you'd join, and describe the problems they're working on. They often list recent publications from the team. Vague 'AI research' postings without specifics usually mean the company wants to sound impressive but doesn't have a real research agenda.
AI Hiring Overview
The AI job market has 3,823 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 112 entry-level, 1,798 mid-level, 1,516 senior, and 397 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 15% of the market (590 positions). The remaining 3,217 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.
The market median for AI roles is $200,100. Top-quartile compensation starts at $253,500. The 90th percentile reaches $307,500. Highest-paying categories: AI Engineering Manager ($275,000 median, 41 roles); AI Safety ($274,200 median, 55 roles); Research Engineer ($260,000 median, 434 roles).
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
The AI Job Market Today
The AI job market spans 3,823 open positions across 15 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (2,629), Data Scientist (322), AI Software Engineer (279). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.
The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (112) are outnumbered by mid-level (1,798) and senior (1,516) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 397 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.
Remote work availability sits at 15% of all AI roles (590 positions), with 3,217 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.
AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $200,100. Top-quartile roles start at $253,500, and the 90th percentile reaches $307,500. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.
Category matters for compensation. AI Engineering Manager roles lead at $275,000 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $140,000. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.
The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Python (1,979 postings), Aws (1,190 postings), Azure (899 postings), Rag (839 postings), Gcp (726 postings), Pytorch (595 postings), Prompt Engineering (595 postings), Claude (540 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
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