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Senior Data Scientist or Principal Data Scientist

Metropolitan Council
See Position Description
medical insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, vision insurance, retirement plan, pension
United States, Minnesota, Minneapolis
Jun 11, 2025
WHO WE ARE We are the Metropolitan Council , the regional government for the seven-county Twin Cities metropolitan area. We plan 30 years ahead for the future of the metropolitan area and provide regional transportation, wastewater, and housing services. More information about us on our website. We are committed to supporting a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve. The Metropolitan Council's Metro Transit Division is one of the country's largest transit systems, employs more than 3,000 people, and provides ridership through an integrated network of buses, light rail and commuter trains, as well as a resource for those who carpool, vanpool, walk or bike in the Twin Cities. How your work would contribute to our organization and the Twin Cities region: Metro Transit Data Scientists (series of positions ranging from Associate Data Scientist to Principal Data Scientist) collaborate with Metro Transit business units and IS/IT teams by designing and implementing data pipelines in Databricks used to drive insight and establish business intelligence data sources. Currently, Metro Transit is posting for Senior Data Scientist and Principal Data Scientist. What you would do in this job Senior Data Scientist Major Duties: Perform statistical modeling and analysis to identify patterns and trends to support insights for transit operations and planning. Performs lead and advanced performance data analysis research to identify the best transit industry practices and to inform modeling techniques. Evaluate systems for data capture: collect, clean, and prepare data for statistical analysis, create and maintain databases, and organize data and results of analytics projects. Develop and deploy interactive tools, combining knowledge of business processes, software development techniques and database management. Principal Data Scientist Major Duties: Lead and manage data engineering for business partners in order to increase accessibility and quality of transit data. Lead analysis (including advanced statistical modeling) and business intelligence reporting that supports the division's strategic plan. Lead project teams to inform operations' best practices, council policies, or procedures. Develop specific, actionable recommendations based on knowledge of existing practice, data sources and appropriate analytical tools. Provide work direction for data scientists and analysts, identify resources and roles for sustained monitoring of best practices, policy outcomes or procedural changes. Stay up to date on best practices related to data development, analysis, modeling, and how data can impact business processes. Share agency successes widely and bring ideas and best practices from peer agencies into our organizational context. Develop Metro Transit data products, plots and dashboards in partnership with Information Services and Communications to present complex findings to internal and public stakeholders. What education and experience are required for this job (minimum qualifications) Senior Data Scientist/ Non-Represented/ Grade H Any of the following combinations of completed education (in Statistics, Mathematics, Economics, Analytics, Data Science or other related highly quantitative field) and experience (in demographic and socioeconomic research that includes creating, summarizing, and analyzing data; and advanced data analysis and statistics, including development and deployment of regression, machine learning models, econometric modeling, and the manipulation of datasets, one year of which is leading research projects): Bachelor's degree and four years of experience Master's degree and two years of experience Doctorate (PhD) degree Principal Data Scientist/ Non-Represented / Grade I Any of the following combinations of completed education (in Statistics, Mathematics, Economics, Analytics, Data Science or other related highly quantitative field) and experience (a dvanced data analysis and statistics, including experience in the development and deployment of regression, machine learning models, econometric modeling, and the manipulation of datasets, including leading data and analytics projects, including defining project goals, scopes, and project design); Bachelor's degree and five years of experience Master's degree and three years of experience Doctorate (PhD) degree and one year of experience What additional skills and experience would be helpful in this job (desired qualifications): Proficient in R or Python and Git and GitHub, experience using GitHub for collaboration Experience with Apache Spark and PySpark and Databricks Experience developing web-based interactive visualization tools (e.g., R Shiny, D3, Tableau) Experience writing SQL and extracting data from databases. Experience working with demographic, socioeconomic, and spatial data. At the Principal Data Scientist Level: experience as a project manager or lead. Experience working with diverse populations of internal and external customers. What knowledge, skills and abilities you should have within the first six months on the job: Knowledge: Knowledge of statistical analysis techniques (regression analysis, survival analysis, time series modeling, etc.) Knowledge of academic and industry research methods Knowledge of database systems design and maintenance Knowledge of bus and rail transit systems operations, principles and practices. Knowledge of machine learning models (random forests, support vector machines, neural networks, etc.) Knowledge of interactive visualization and modeling tool development Knowledge of project management standard processes Skills: Written and communication skills, sufficient to communicate challenges or findings related to data in plain language Intermediate skill in applied mathematics and statistics Intermediate skill in Microsoft Excel Advanced level skills in a statistical analysis software package (SPSS, SAS, STATA, R, etc.) Intermediate skills in database design Skilled in data engineering with structured, unstructured and semi structured data Abilities: Ability to train and coach on technical skills and concepts Ability to work effectively with other departments, divisions and disciplines in order to develop data science projects to answer crucial business questions Ability to read and understand complex academic and technical papers Ability to write summary reports, technical papers and literature reviews Ability to utilize statistical analysis to analyze data, identify trends, and determine root causes of failures Ability to guide and lead full analytics project management life-cycle ranging from defining business objectives to communicating, deploying and training business user on analytic solutions. Additional information Senior Data Scientist: Union/Grade: Non-Represented /Grade H Full salary range: $41.65 - $67.60 Hourly / $86,632.00 - $140,608.00 Annually FLSA Status: Exempt Safety Sensitive: No Principal Data Scientist Union/Grade: Non-Represented /Grade I Full Salary Range: $45.05 - $73.11 Hourly / $93,704.00 - $152,068.80 Annually FLSA Status: Exempt Safety Sensitive: No What your work environment would be: You would perform your work in a standard office setting. Work may sometimes require travel between your primary work site and other sites. What steps the recruitment process involves: We review your minimum qualifications. We request your Work Record Evaluation (ATU employees only). We rate your education and experience. We conduct a structured panel interview. We conduct a selection interview. Once you have successfully completed the steps above then; candidates will be notified of their application status through email only. If you are new to the Metropolitan Council , you must pass a drug test (safety sensitive positions only), and a background check which verifies education, employment, and criminal history. A driving record check and/or physical may be conducted if applicable to the job. If you have a criminal conviction, you do not automatically fail. The Metropolitan Council considers felony, gross misdemeanor and misdemeanor convictions on a case-by-case basis, based on whether they are related to the job and whether the candidate has demonstrated adequate rehabilitation. If you are already an employee of the Metropolitan Council , you must pass a drug test (if moving from a non-safety sensitive position to a safety sensitive position) and criminal background check if the job you're applying for is safety sensitive, is a supervisory or management job, is in the Finance, Information Services, Audit, or Human Resources departments, or has access to financial records, files/databases, cash, vouchers or transit fare cards. A driving record check and/or physical may be conducted if applicable to the position. IMPORTANT: If you make a false statement or withhold information, you may be barred from job consideration. The Metropolitan Council is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action, and veteran-friendly employer. The Council is committed to a workforce that reflects the diversity of the region and strongly encourages persons of color, members of the LGBTQ community, individuals with disabilities, women, and veterans to apply. If you have a disability that requires an accommodation during the selection process, please email HR-CCHealth@metc.state.mn.us .