Data Scientist Intern

Job Summary:

You will leverage your expertise in bioscience, mathematics, and computing to build robust models and execution environments – toward deciphering the complexities of gut microbiota and their influence on human health. This internship offers an exciting opportunity to work on a cutting-edge platform that connects millions of microbiome samples and to directly contribute to advancing our understanding of gut health.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and implement predictive models specifically tailored to capture gut health outcomes from microbiomics data.
• Analyze gut microbiome datasets to derive actionable insights on gut health and related biological processes.
• Conduct feature engineering and data preprocessing to enhance model performance on gut microbiome datasets.
• Train, validate, and fine-tune machine learning models using appropriate performance metrics relevant to gut health research.
• Collaborate with bioinformaticians and subject matter experts to translate biological insights into robust, data-driven models.
• Integrate newly developed models into existing analysis pipelines to enable real-time insights into gut health.
• Document modeling methodologies, code, and experimental results to ensure reproducibility and continuous improvement.
• Evaluate model performance, troubleshoot issues, and iteratively refine model design to enhance accuracy and reliability.
• Collaborate with bioinformaticians to troubleshoot and refine pipeline execution failures, ensuring reliable modeling of gut health data.
• Contribute to the enhancement of existing models and the development of new modeling pipelines that target gut health research.

Required Skills and Qualifications:

• Proficiency in Python and R, with strong experience in data manipulation and model development using libraries such as pandas, NumPy, and scikit-learn.
• Demonstrated expertise in designing, developing, and validating predictive models, especially within a biological or gut health context.
• Experience with Linux/Unix operating systems and command line troubleshooting for model deployment and maintenance.
• Familiarity with version control systems like git/GitHub to ensure collaborative and reproducible model development.
• Strong analytical skills with a deep understanding of feature engineering, model selection, and performance evaluation.
• A keen interest in gut health and applying microbiomics data to create robust, data-driven models that capture complex biological phenomena.

Preferred Skills:

• Hands-on experience with advanced machine learning frameworks such as TensorFlow or PyTorch for developing deep learning models.
• Familiarity with cloud computing platforms (e.g., AWS, GCP, or Azure) for scalable model training and deployment.
• Experience with containerization technologies like Docker to streamline model integration and delivery.
• Prior exposure to microbiome research or bioinformatics, particularly with a focus on gut health, to effectively translate biological insights into predictive modeling.

Education and Experience:

• Currently pursuing or recently completed a BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Science, Data Science, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, or a related field—with coursework or research focused on predictive modeling and machine learning.
• Relevant coursework should include machine learning, predictive analytics, data modeling, computational statistics, and advanced data analysis, ideally applied to biological or gut microbiomics data.
• Hands-on experience through internships, research projects, or personal initiatives in developing and deploying predictive models—especially in the context of gut health—is highly desirable.

About Us:

Since its inception in 1994, Zymo Research has been proudly serving the scientific community by providing innovative, reliable, and high-quality research tools and products. Whether it's DNA, RNA, epigenetics, microbiomics, protein, or yeast-based research, our philosophy remains the same: To provide the highest quality products in the industry while ensuring they are both simple to use and reliable in their performance.

Recognized as a Top Workplace by the Orange County Register in 2021, 2022, and named a Top Workplace USA in 2023, Zymo Research continues to be a vibrant community where employees thrive, feel connected, and are inspired by their work. If you are passionate about contributing to scientific advancement and want to be part of an exceptional team in a dynamic, growing company, we'd love to hear from you!

Compensation:

The estimated base compensation range for this position is $20/hour at the time of posting. Actual compensation details will be provided in writing at the time of offer, if applicable, and is based on several factors we believe fairly and accurately impact compensation, including geographic location, experience, knowledge, skills, abilities, and other job permitted factors.

Equal Employment Opportunity Employer:

Zymo Research welcomes candidates of all backgrounds. These include sex, age, color, race, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, physical & mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military and veteran status, or any other protected status as defined by federal, state, or local law.

Location:

Onsite – Zymo Research 17171 Murphy Ave. Irvine, CA 92614