Senior Data Scientist: Facts, Skills, and Next Paths

A Senior Data Scientist designs and deploys machine learning models and statistical analyses to solve complex, mission-critical problems. Day to day, this means cleaning and integrating large datasets, building predictive algorithms, and working with engineers to put models into production on cloud platforms.

The role often sits within a larger analytics or engineering team and requires close collaboration with subject-matter experts and stakeholders. For example, at Praescient Analytics you would define predictive analytics vision and machine learning workflows for a secure cloud environment supporting national background investigations, while at Leidos you would lead analytics efforts from problem definition through deployment for national security programs. You are expected to provide technical leadership and guide junior team members.

The median salary for this role is approximately $233,746. The skills most frequently requested in current job postings are Machine Learning & Deep Learning (90%), Python or R (80%), Data Analysis (70%), and Statistical Analysis (60%).