Biologist Jobs in USA with Visa Sponsorship
Biologist roles in the U.S. routinely qualify as specialty occupations under H-1B visa, and federal research employers can sponsor through cap-exempt pathways. Most positions require a bachelor's degree minimum, with graduate credentials strengthening petitions for research-focused roles. For detailed occupation requirements, see the O*NET profile.
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Job Title: Computational Biologist (AI/ML) - Essex Management
Location
US Remote
About Essex
This position supports "Essex, an Emmes Company". Essex is a biomedical informatics and health information technology-focused consultancy founded in 2009 and headquartered in Rockville, MD. The Essex team comprises experts with extensive experience in strategically developing and managing complex health and biomedical information programs for clients in the Federal Government, research academia, and private sectors.
Primary Purpose
The Computational Biologist (AI/ML) is a role within the Bioinformatics Department of the BIDS Division at Essex. This role brings meaningful scientific and technical expertise to the design, execution, and delivery of bioinformatics work across federal biomedical research programs. The Computational Biologist (AI/ML) owns well-defined tasks and small projects with minimal supervision and contributes substantively to team problem-solving and scientific quality. This role specifically focuses on applying Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Deep Learning to bioinformatic analysis, and thus the ideal candidate is expected to leverage traditional bioinformatic techniques as well as emerging techniques. Essex supports programs in precision oncology, cancer genomics, clinical data infrastructure, and translational research, and the Computational Biologist (AI/ML) is expected to bring scientific judgment and technical capability to the work, not just execution.
Responsibilities
Core Functions
- Own and execute well-defined analytical and technical tasks and small projects with minimal supervision from senior staff or your manager.
- Assist Associate Informaticists with task-related questions, troubleshooting, and orientation.
- Contribute substantively to team discussions on methodology, standards, tools, and technical decisions.
- Apply working familiarity with best practices in your domain to deliver scientifically sound, high-quality work products.
- Support peer review of deliverables and contribute to quality assurance activities.
- Contribute to team documentation, SOPs, and knowledge base materials.
- Shadow senior staff during candidate interviews to begin developing evaluation skills.
- Participate in internal training sessions, brown bags, and knowledge-sharing activities.
- Perform other related duties as assigned.
Role-Specific Functions
- Design and implement AI/ML models applied to biomedical data, including genomic, proteomic, and multimodal clinical datasets, to support precision oncology and translational research.
- Apply large language models, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) techniques, and graph neural networks to make biomedical data interoperable and AI-ready.
- Develop, test, and optimize pipelines for variant calling and annotation leveraging modern ML workflows and frameworks.
- Curate, model, and integrate genetic and clinical datasets into standardized, interoperable formats to support precision medicine programs.
- Generate high-quality, interpretable reports for internal and external stakeholders that translate complex AI/ML outputs into actionable scientific and clinical insights.
Qualifications
Required skills
Core Skills
- Working proficiency in the core technical tools, analytical approaches, and data standards relevant to the assigned program and department.
- Ability to work independently and within a team in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.
- Strong written and oral communication skills, including the ability to document work clearly and present findings to technical audiences.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications.
Role-Specific Skills
- Proficiency in Python and SQL; demonstrated experience with ML frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow) and code versioning (Git).
- Strong background in machine learning and AI, including deep learning architectures (CNNs, GNNs) applied to biomedical or complex multi-modal datasets.
- Familiarity with genetic variant standards (HGVS, VCF) and clinical data ontologies.
- Demonstrated ability to work cross-functionally and communicate technical results clearly to diverse scientific and clinical audiences.
Required experience
Core Experience
- Bachelor's degree or advanced degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, data science, genetics, biology, health informatics, clinical research, or a related field.
- 2 to 5 years of relevant professional or research experience.
Role-Specific Experience
- Demonstrated success applying AI/ML to biomedical or multi-modal datasets (genomics, proteomics, clinical).
- Track record of publications or applied innovation in AI-driven data science for life sciences preferred.
- Experience applying LLMs or RAG approaches to scientific or clinical data problems preferred.
Why work at Emmes?
At Emmes, your actions and hard work will have a direct impact on public health initiatives, both globally and in our local communities with opportunities for volunteerism through our Emmes Cares community engagement program. We offer a competitive benefits package focused on the health and needs of our growing workforce, including:
- Flexible Approved Time Off
- Tuition Reimbursement
- 401k Retirement Plan
- Work From Home Anywhere in the US
- Maternal/Paternal Leave
- Casual Dress Code & Work Environment
CONNECT WITH US! Follow us on Twitter - @EmmesCRO Find us on LinkedIn - Emmes
The Emmes Company, LLC is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in its selection and employment practices. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to disability or protected veteran status.
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Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding Biologist Jobs
Verify your degree field matches the role
USCIS evaluates whether your degree directly relates to the specific biological discipline advertised. A general biology degree supporting a molecular biology role may trigger a Request for Evidence, so document the field overlap explicitly in your petition.
Target cap-exempt employers for H-1B sponsorship
Universities, nonprofit research institutions, and government-affiliated labs are cap-exempt, meaning they can file H-1B petitions year-round without lottery risk. Biologist roles at these institutions often move to approval faster than private-sector filings.
Pull wage data before negotiating your offer
Your employer's LCA must certify a wage at or above the DOL prevailing wage for your occupation and location. Use the OFLC Wage Search to look up Level I through Level IV wages for your specific biology SOC code before you negotiate.
Get your foreign credentials evaluated early
If your biology degree is from outside the U.S., obtain a credential evaluation before applying. USCIS accepts evaluations showing your foreign degree is equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's in a relevant biological science, but delays here stall the entire petition timeline.
Check the O*NET profile to build your specialty occupation case
The O*NET occupation profile for Biologists documents the degree requirements and knowledge domains USCIS references when evaluating specialty occupation status. Pull the job zone and education data to support your petition's specialty occupation argument.
File your LCA and I-129 through Migrate Mate
Once you have a signed offer, Migrate Mate handles the LCA submission to DOL and I-129 preparation at a flat fee, with a dedicated expert reviewing your biologist-specific documentation before filing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a biologist role qualify as a specialty occupation for H-1B?
Yes, most biologist positions qualify because USCIS requires a bachelor's degree or higher in a specific biological science as the normal minimum for entry into the occupation. The O*NET profile for Biologists designates the role as Job Zone 5, which supports the specialty occupation argument. Roles requiring only a general science degree with no biological specialization can face greater scrutiny.
Can biologists get sponsored outside the H-1B lottery?
Yes. Universities, nonprofit research centers, and federally funded labs are cap-exempt H-1B employers and can sponsor biologists year-round without entering the annual lottery. Many government research agencies also hire through direct federal employment pathways that don't require a private-sector visa petition at all. Browse open biologist roles at sponsoring employers on Migrate Mate.
Does a master's or PhD in biology improve H-1B approval odds?
A graduate degree strengthens the specialty occupation case and may qualify you for the advanced degree cap, which historically has a higher selection rate in the H-1B lottery. For research biologist roles specifically, a master's or PhD also aligns more closely with the advertised duties, reducing the likelihood of a Request for Evidence from USCIS on the degree-to-role match.
What happens to H-1B sponsorship if a biologist switches employers mid-petition?
If you change employers after an H-1B has been filed but before it's approved, the new employer must file a fresh petition. If you're already in H-1B status, portability under AC21 allows you to change jobs in a same or similar occupational classification after 180 days of the petition being filed. Biologist roles generally qualify as same or similar to adjacent life sciences positions.
Do biologist roles qualify for PERM-based green card sponsorship?
Yes. Employers can sponsor biologists for employment-based green cards through the PERM labor certification process, which requires demonstrating no qualified U.S. workers are available for the role. Research biologist positions with specialized subdiscipline requirements, such as computational biology or marine biology, often satisfy the specificity needed to support a PERM filing under the EB-2 or EB-3 category.
What is the prevailing wage requirement for sponsored Biologist jobs?
U.S. employers sponsoring a visa must pay at least the prevailing wage, which is what workers in the same role, area, and experience level typically earn. The Department of Labor sets this rate to make sure companies aren't hiring foreign workers simply because they'd accept lower pay than a U.S. worker. It varies by job title, location, and experience. You can look up current prevailing wage rates for any occupation and location using the OFLC Wage Search page.