What are the responsibilities and job description for the Genomic Data Scientist position at Character Biosciences?
About Character Biosciences
Character Biosciences is a precision medicine company pioneering targeted therapies for ophthalmology. Our patient data platform integrates genomics with deep, longitudinal clinical and imaging data, enabling us to uncover genetic drivers of disease progression, advance novel therapeutics, and define patient stratification strategies that improve clinical success.
Our interdisciplinary team spans human genetics, clinical science, data science and engineering, and drug discovery and development. We are advancing two programs for Dry Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) into the clinic, with additional discovery-stage programs underway.
Founded in 2018, Character has raised capital from leading investors at the intersection of healthcare and technology, including an oversubscribed $110 million Series B in 2025 co-led by aMoon and Luma Group, with participation from Bausch Lomb, Innovation Endeavors, Sanofi Ventures, Catalio Capital Management, S32, KdT Ventures, and Jefferson Life Sciences. We also maintain a multi-target drug discovery collaboration with Bausch Lomb to develop
innovative precision medicines for AMD.
Role: Genomic Data Scientist
Reports to: Human Genetics Lead
Department: Data & Analytics
Level: Scientist I/II
Location: Brisbane, CA or Jersey City, NJ
The Opportunity
As a member within our Data Science & Analytics team, you will serve as the primary architect of inquiry, interrogating complex multimodal genomic and biomedical datasets to frame the "killer questions" that drive both therapeutic breakthroughs and business value. Reporting to the Human Genetics Lead, you will lead high-impact initiatives that transform high-dimensional patient data into novel scientific insights and actionable discovery strategies. You will provide executive-level input to our genetics and bioinformatics roadmap while orchestrating cross-functional collaboration between clinical, engineering, and drug discovery teams to ensure our data-driven hypotheses translate directly into clinical reality and competitive advantage.
This role is hybrid and can be based in either South San Francisco or Jersey City.
This is a preferred hybrid role based at our Jersey City, NJ or Brisbane, CA office.
Key Responsibilities
The annual pay range for this full-time position is $130,000-$175,000 equity benefits
This salary range represents the expected base compensation for this role and may vary based on factors including experience, skills, and level.
Benefits include a competitive salary, strong equity incentives, medical, dental, vision, 401(k), an accrued paid time off policy. Character is committed to recruiting, developing, and supporting colleagues from all backgrounds. We embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion as an integral part of our culture.
EEO Statement
Character Biosciences is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected status.
Work Authorization
Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States.
Character Biosciences is a precision medicine company pioneering targeted therapies for ophthalmology. Our patient data platform integrates genomics with deep, longitudinal clinical and imaging data, enabling us to uncover genetic drivers of disease progression, advance novel therapeutics, and define patient stratification strategies that improve clinical success.
Our interdisciplinary team spans human genetics, clinical science, data science and engineering, and drug discovery and development. We are advancing two programs for Dry Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) into the clinic, with additional discovery-stage programs underway.
Founded in 2018, Character has raised capital from leading investors at the intersection of healthcare and technology, including an oversubscribed $110 million Series B in 2025 co-led by aMoon and Luma Group, with participation from Bausch Lomb, Innovation Endeavors, Sanofi Ventures, Catalio Capital Management, S32, KdT Ventures, and Jefferson Life Sciences. We also maintain a multi-target drug discovery collaboration with Bausch Lomb to develop
innovative precision medicines for AMD.
Role: Genomic Data Scientist
Reports to: Human Genetics Lead
Department: Data & Analytics
Level: Scientist I/II
Location: Brisbane, CA or Jersey City, NJ
The Opportunity
As a member within our Data Science & Analytics team, you will serve as the primary architect of inquiry, interrogating complex multimodal genomic and biomedical datasets to frame the "killer questions" that drive both therapeutic breakthroughs and business value. Reporting to the Human Genetics Lead, you will lead high-impact initiatives that transform high-dimensional patient data into novel scientific insights and actionable discovery strategies. You will provide executive-level input to our genetics and bioinformatics roadmap while orchestrating cross-functional collaboration between clinical, engineering, and drug discovery teams to ensure our data-driven hypotheses translate directly into clinical reality and competitive advantage.
This role is hybrid and can be based in either South San Francisco or Jersey City.
This is a preferred hybrid role based at our Jersey City, NJ or Brisbane, CA office.
Key Responsibilities
- Advanced Target Discovery & Validation: Accelerate the therapeutic pipeline by integrating cutting-edge analytical frameworks tailored to our unique patient cohorts. You will lead the expansion of in silico target validation tools, empowering bench scientists to make high-confidence, data-driven decisions on target prioritization.
- Novel Insight Generation: Architect and execute creative analytical strategies to "excavate" deep biological insights from our proprietary data platform. You will move beyond single-variant analysis to uncover higher-level downstream signals, such as gene-set enrichment and pathway-level interactions, that drive business and scientific value.
- Multimodal Ecosystem Architecture: Implement and support a sophisticated scientific computing environment that seamlessly bridges genomic, clinical, and imaging data. Your goal is to create a unified, "frictionless" data experience that integrates complex pipelines into a cohesive discovery engine.
- User-Centric Scientific Reporting: Develop and deploy intuitive, user-friendly reporting platforms that translate high-dimensional data into accessible insights, ensuring that complex multimodal findings are interpretable and actionable for stakeholders across the organization.
- Education: Ph.D. in Statistical Genetics, Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, or a related quantitative field with a deep focus on human disease genetics/genomics.
- Industry Experience: 0–2 years of post-PhD industry experience (BS/MS) in genomic data analysis.
- Biological Synthesis: Hands-on expertise in gene-set and pathway analysis, with a proven ability to "connect the dots" across genomic datasets.
- Multimodal Integration: A track record of integrating disparate data streams—including WGS/WES, single-cell RNA-seq, proteomics, and EHR data—to construct holistic biological models.
- Strategic Problem-Solving: Demonstrated ability to deconstruct ambiguous business or scientific challenges into structured, testable hypotheses.
- Collaborative Leadership: Exceptional communication skills and a "founder’s mindset," with the ability to translate "deep-tech" findings into actionable "so-what" insights for executive and clinical leadership.
- Scientific Excellence: A strong record of innovation evidenced by high-impact peer-reviewed publications or patents.
- Therapeutic Expertise: Specialized knowledge or experience in Ophthalmology.
- Data Versatility: Direct experience working with Real-World Data (RWD) and large-scale proprietary Genomic datasets.
- Machine Learning Proficiency: Practical experience applying advanced frameworks (e.g., Graph Neural Networks, Transformer architectures) to biological sequences or longitudinal clinical data.
The annual pay range for this full-time position is $130,000-$175,000 equity benefits
This salary range represents the expected base compensation for this role and may vary based on factors including experience, skills, and level.
Benefits include a competitive salary, strong equity incentives, medical, dental, vision, 401(k), an accrued paid time off policy. Character is committed to recruiting, developing, and supporting colleagues from all backgrounds. We embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion as an integral part of our culture.
EEO Statement
Character Biosciences is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected status.
Work Authorization
Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States.