Job Opportunities - R Data Analysis Mentors, at SFU Faculty of Health Sciences

**This is being posted on behalf of Dr. Travis Salway, Faculty of Health Sciences. All queries should be sent to: travis_salway@sfu.ca.

R Data Analysis Mentors (hiring for 2 positions)

Timeline: Dec 2023 – Apr 2024

Total hours: 24 hours (per mentor)

Salary: $40/hour plus 4% in lieu of vacation time

Application closing date: December 1, 2023,

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Summary:

In January – April 2024, the Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) will offer a pilot workshop, provisionally titled “R Bootcamp”, to teach basic R programming skills to 1st-year MPH students before they start their summer practica. The workshop is offered outside of the MPH core curriculum and at no cost to students. It is being provided in response to feedback from recent MPH students and alumni indicating that this is an important skill for some students to develop before completing a data-focused MPH practicum.

The bootcamp will cover the following topics: basic programming language; importing survey data; basic data manipulation, computation of descriptive statistics, and basic visualization of data. The bootcamp will include self-completion of a free online course and viewing instructional videos, followed by four 2-hour in-person workshop sessions led by mentors, where students can review their R outputs and ask questions. Students will practice R skills using the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) dataset.

Work performed:

• Draft or revise practice questions (3 sets) (approx. 6 hours)
• Create video teaching data visualization in R (approx. 4 hours)
• Facilitate in-person workshop sessions (approx. 12 hours)
• Answer students’ questions via email, zoom, or in-person (approx. 2 hours)

Work equipment and location(s):

Mentors should have access to their own computer for communication with bootcamp students and preparation of workshop sessions.

Workshop sessions will be held in-person at Blusson 11660. All other activities can be completed at home or on campus (e.g., Student Commons). Workshop sessions are tentatively scheduled for Wednesdays at 10am-12pm.

Qualifications:

• Ability to use R statistical software for basic data manipulation descriptive analyses in the context of epidemiological research
• Experience teaching or tutoring in statistics, epidemiology, or related subject
• Ability to work independently and within a team, as needed
• Experience using the CCHS is an asset (not required)
• Experience with the FHS MPH or other graduate programs is an asset (not required)

Education is strengthened by the equitable inclusion of voices from populations that have historically been marginalized or absent in academia. We value the perspectives of, and strongly encourage applications from, Indigenous and Two-Spirit people, Black and other People of Colour, queer people, trans people, and people with disabilities.

Interested applicants should submit a CV, brief description of experience using R (1-paragraph), and sample R code they have written by December 1, 2023, to travis_salway@sfu.ca. Short-listed candidates will need to provide a reference who can speak to their experience with R.