Data Scientist in Health Economics and Epidemiology

The Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences at the University of Oxford is a thriving community of researchers dedicated to better understanding musculoskeletal diseases that affect people at all stages of their life, and to develop and assess current and new interventions designed to improve the quality of life of patients, their families and carers. The Department is a rich conglomerate of prolific world-leading researchers, and the need to consider health economics in the growing number of funded studies has led to a growing demand for a dedicated team of health economists to answer key questions, from specific resource use impacts to broader burdens of disease or cost-effectiveness analyses. Our team specialises in conducting these studies using real-world, routinely-collected data.

We are housed in the Centre for Medical Statistics within the Department, as part of a larger team of researchers focused on using observational data to answer health economics and pharmaco-epidemiology research questions. We work closely with clinicians of diverse specialties, with strong collaborations with other national and international world-leading research groups. Our work is highly translational and is conducted with close links to patient groups, many of them past and current patients at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre located across the road from our building. Disease areas of particular interest include osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, sarcopenia, and rare musculoskeletal diseases, amongst others. Interventions commonly assessed include joint replacements, pain-management, and physical exercise.

About the Role

The postholder will be responsible for leading the development of analysis plans and conducting high-quality research in health economics, epidemiology, and real-world evidence using large observational healthcare datasets. The postholder will provide written technical input into protocols and ethics committee submissions, contribute to the development of study protocols, analysis plans, and data access applications for ongoing and future projects. They will also contribute to the development, analysis and write-up of new research studies and to the dissemination of findings through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, and other scientific communications. The postholder will take full responsibility for the integrity of the data and the conduct of the statistical analyses, including manage, clean and analyse data using reproducible analytical workflows in R.

About You

You must hold a post-graduate degree in health economics, epidemiology, applied medical statistics or closely related field. You will have experience in health economics and epidemiological methods relevant to observational health research. Strong programming skills (preferably in R), including experience analysing large observational healthcare datasets, as well as demonstrated ability to write research reports and papers, with track records of peer reviewed scientific publications commensurate with career stage are essential. A PhD/DPhil in Health Economics, Epidemiology, Medical Statistics or a closely related discipline and experience working with UK healthcare datasets such as CPRD, HES, and/or equivalent international healthcare data sources is desirable.

Application Process

The University of Oxford is committed to equality and valuing diversity. All applicants will be judged on merit, according to the selection criteria.

Applications for this vacancy should be made online and must include a CV and a supporting statement explaining how you meet the selection criteria, using examples of your skills and experience.

The closing date for applications is Wednesday, 22 July 2026.

Interviews will take place during the week commencing 24 Aug 2026 and will be online.

Please quote reference 187413 in all correspondence.

Advert information