Associate Data Scientist (Entry Level)

About This Role

SAS Institute is hiring Associate Data Scientists to join its AI and analytics product teams. You will apply ML and statistical methods to develop, test, and demonstrate SAS Viya and SAS AI platform capabilities — helping enterprise customers in banking, insurance, and government deploy trustworthy AI at scale.

Job Overview

• Job Title: Associate Data Scientist (Entry Level)
• Company: SAS Institute
• Location: Cary, NC / Dallas, TX / Chicago, IL / New York, NY / Seattle, WA
• Job Type: Full-time
• Experience Level: Entry-level (0–2 years)
• Salary Range: $26–$36/hr
• Posted Date: 2026-06-01
• Application Deadline: 2026-07-01

Role Context

SAS Institute is the pioneer of analytics software, and its data science team develops the ML and AI features within SAS Viya. Associate data scientists work on internal product development — building model interpretability tools, AutoML capabilities, and responsible AI frameworks — or on customer-facing analytics consulting projects depending on team placement.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and test ML models and statistical analyses using SAS, Python, and R
• Build AutoML and model explainability demonstrations for the SAS Viya platform
• Conduct customer data science workshops and proof-of-concept analyses
• Apply responsible AI techniques — fairness metrics, model interpretability, bias detection
• Contribute to SAS technical documentation and analytical content libraries
• Collaborate with product managers and software engineers on feature development

Requirements & Skills

• Bachelor's or Master's in Statistics, Data Science, CS, or a quantitative field (2024–2025 grad)
• Proficiency in Python or R; SAS programming knowledge is a strong plus
• Strong foundation in statistical modeling — regression, classification, time series
• Understanding of model interpretability (SHAP, LIME, partial dependence plots)
• Data visualization skills with Matplotlib, Seaborn, or Tableau
• Strong analytical writing for technical reports and documentation

Benefits & Work Conditions

• $26–$36/hr with annual profit-sharing bonus and merit increases
• Hybrid schedule — SAS headquarters in Cary, NC is known for campus-like amenities
• Free on-campus healthcare clinic, childcare center, and fitness facilities at HQ
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Generous PTO and no-layoff philosophy — SAS has never had a mass layoff

Who Should Apply

Statistics or data science graduates who value stability, work-life balance, and rigorous analytical methods. SAS is uniquely appropriate for people who want to work deeply on trustworthy, interpretable AI in regulated industries and value a people-first corporate culture.

About the Company

SAS Institute is the world's largest privately held software company, known for its analytics and AI platform used in over 80,000 organizations globally. Founded in 1976, it has a legendary culture of stability, employee care, and long-term analytical innovation.

How to Apply

Apply at careers.sas.com. The hiring process is straightforward: a recruiter screen, a technical assessment or take-home problem, and a panel interview covering statistical methods and your data science background.