Senior Spatial Statistician: Population and Mobility Modelling

Location:           UK or Sweden

Salary:               £61,584 to £65,268 (UK) / SEK 686,472 to 727,584 (Sweden)

Hours:                Full Time

Contract:            Fixed-term, 18 months, with possibility of extension and later permanent contract

About Flowminder

Flowminder is a non-profit foundation. We enable decision makers to access the data they need to transform the lives of vulnerable people, at scale.

We analyse pseudonymised mobile operator data, satellite imagery and household survey data to measure where people are and how they move. We work with national statistics offices, health ministries and disaster management agencies in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), alongside UN agencies, the World Bank and development banks.

We are a small team, based mainly in Southampton and Stockholm, working in countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Ghana and Pakistan. Our working language is English. We also work with some partners in French. 

About the role

Flowminder produces privacy-safe, aggregated population and mobility statistics from mobile network operator (MNO) data. We are looking for a spatial statistician to work on the next generation of these estimates based on projects in collaboration with the Gates Foundation and Google. The immediate applications are polio eradication and vaccination planning in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

This is a specialised technical role, with most of the postholder's time on developing, validating and applying statistical methods. They will be our reference point for spatial population modelling.  If you also have experience leading projects independently, we are interested.  

About you

Essential

• PhD in statistics, geography, demography or a related field, with a thesis or research work applying spatial statistics, ideally to population data.
• Advanced spatial statistics, including Bayesian hierarchical and geostatistical models (for example INLA/SPDE, Stan, small-area estimation) and uncertainty quantification.
• Experience with using household survey data (DHS, MICS, coverage surveys or similar) or similar data in low- and middle-income countries.
• Excellent written and spoken English, and the ability to explain statistical choices to non-specialists. 

Highly desirable 

• Experience working with several types of population data, such as, household survey data, high-resolution census data, bednet, vaccination or other health programme data, or other sparse or uncertain data types.
• Specific experience developing methods for estimating population mobility, migration or displacement.
• Strong R and/or Python skills and reproducible workflows; Google Earth Engine or satellite-derived data such as building footprints. 

Terms

• Location:  We can employ candidates who live in either the UK or Sweden.  Ability to  reach the Southampton office or the Stockholm office regularly is desirable.  
• Eligibility: You must already have the right to work in the country you’ll be based in (UK or Sweden). We are unable to offer visa sponsorship.
• Travel: typically once every three months, for discussions with partners and colleagues.

What we offer

• Salary: £61,584 to £65,268 (UK) / SEK 686,472 to 727,584 (Sweden)
• 37.5 hours per week, with flexible working hours. Hybrid working.
• 25 days annual leave, plus national holidays, plus three office closure days in December
• Employer pension contribution on appointment, UK 8%, Sweden ITP1-equivalent
• Up to 20 days paid sick leave in any 12-month period 

Full details and how to apply, click Apply button above.

Closing Date: 25th November 2026

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