Technical Associate, Annotation and Proofreading

Mindspan Institute; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 75,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, vision benefits

401(k) retirement match

Job summary

Mindspan Institute in Cambridge, MA seeks a hands-on data annotator to verify and correct automated brain-tissue reconstructions. You will annotate 3D microscopy volumes, trace neurons, and fix segmentation errors, ensuring ground-truth data for model training.

You’ll write protocols, run quality checks, track throughput, and help train new annotators as the team grows at this ground-up institute. This in-person role offers flexible hours, comprehensive benefits, and a salary range of $75,000 to

Qualifications

• B.S./B.A. in neuroscience, biology, or related field or equivalent experience.
• Direct hands-on visual work on images or data (annotation, histology, microscopy, data labeling).
• Ability to apply a written protocol consistently and report deviations.
• Basic quantitative skills: spreadsheets, simple statistics, chart reading.
• Strong attention to detail and scientific rigor.

Responsibilities

• Annotate and proofread 3D microscopy volumes: trace neurons, label synapses, fix split/merge errors.
• Write and maintain annotation protocols with examples of hard cases.
• Run quality control: review annotations, measure agreement, maintain gold-standard sets.
• Track throughput and error rates; report on time and quality.
• Inform tool/model teams about bottlenecks and common model errors.
• Train and onboard new annotators; assist in recruitment as the team grows.
• Document and train; preserve protocol records and rationales.

Education

B.S. or B.A. in neuroscience, biology, biomedical engineering, computer science, or a related field, or equivalent experience

Direct hands-on experience with careful visual work on images or data

Ability to apply a written protocol consistently

Basic quantitative skills (spreadsheets, simple statistics)

Excellent attention to detail and scientific rigor

Tools

Neuroglancer

CAVE

webKnossos

VAST

Dragonfly

Job description

This is a hands-on role checking and correcting what our automated reconstruction produces. You will annotate and proofread microscopy volumes of brain tissue: tracing neurons, marking synapses and other structures, and fixing the errors that automated segmentation makes. Your annotations become the ground truth that our models train on and are measured against, so care and consistency come first, and speed follows.

You report to the Head of Computation and work closely with the scientists and engineers who build our models and annotation tools, using logic and evidence to advance your work so as to boost the performance of all. You will also work closely with the software engineering team to develop and refine tools and infrastructure to streamline data annotation.

This is the first data annotation role at Mindspan. At the start, you will do the annotation yourself and help define how it is done: the protocols, the quality checks, and the training material. As the work grows, we expect this role to grow into leading an annotation team, which means training new annotators, assigning work, and tracking quality and throughput. The job also requires systematic documentation, analysis, and iterative problem solving, to arrive at working protocols, apply them, and share them.

• Annotate and proofread 3D microscopy volumes of brain tissue: trace neurons, label synapses and other structures, and fix split and merge errors in automated segmentation.
• Write and maintain annotation protocols, with examples of hard cases, so that two annotators make the same call on the same data.
• Run quality control: review annotations, measure agreement between annotators, and keep gold-standard sets for training and checking.
• Track throughput and error rates and use basic statistics to report where time goes and where quality varies.
• Tell the tool and model teams what slows annotation down and which errors the models make most often.
• As the team grows, you will be instrumental in training and onboarding new annotators, assign and review their work, and assist in recruitment efforts for future team members.
• Documentation and training: keep protocol records that others can execute, with the reasoning behind each decision.

The disorders of the brain affect over 1,000,000,000 people around the world: Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, stroke, and other conditions. We operate with a sense of urgency, even as we look to understand the brain at its most fundamental levels.

We are hypercollaborative, and focused on impact over short-term markers of productivity. Creativity and failure are the stepping stones to scale, and working together with "strong opinions, weakly held" is our style.

We solve real engineering problems the best way we can: inventing fast when we have to, and using good existing solutions where they exist. We believe hard problems only yield to many disciplines working together, so collaboration is required, not optional.

We expect people to explore the unknown, which means making mistakes daily, owning them, and learning from them to improve and excel.

We are recruiting a team of scientists and engineers who exemplify all these values.

Required Qualifications.

• B.S. or B.A. in neuroscience, biology, biomedical engineering, computer science, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Direct hands-on experience with careful visual work on images or data, such as image annotation, histology, microscopy, or data labeling.
• Ability to apply a written protocol consistently, and to notice and report when a case falls outside it.
• Basic quantitative skills: spreadsheets, simple statistics, and reading a chart.
• Excellent attention to detail and scientific rigor.

Preferred Qualifications.

• Experience with neuron tracing, connectomics proofreading, or volumetric annotation tools (Neuroglancer, CAVE, webKnossos, VAST, Dragonfly, or similar).
• Comfort learning new software and working in 3D image viewers.
• Knowledge of neuroanatomy or cell biology, including what neurons, synapses, and organelles look like in electron or light microscopy.
• Experience training others, writing protocols, and leading a small team.
• Basic scripting or data analysis (Python, R, or similar).
• Experience with quality-control methods such as inter-rater agreement or gold-standard review.

You have a strong detail orientation and exceptional organizational, planning, interpersonal, and communication skills. You are good at writing, can work independently and lead and manage, and can prioritize and multitask as needed. Self-motivation, commitment to high quality standards, and a service-oriented mindset are all key. You have good judgment, balancing flexibility and focus, action and planning, speed and thoughtfulness, as appropriate. You are open to giving and receiving feedback, constructively and thoughtfully, to advance scientific missions and personal growth.

This is an in-person job. Flexible hours may be required at times.

The chance to build the annotation practice of a new research institute from the ground up, alongside some of the most adventurous scientists in the field, and to grow into leading the team that does it. You will get to contribute to addressing one of the most important unmet medical needs of our time, as part of the initial team. You will learn lots of things that probably cannot be learned any other way, as you solve problems, build, and work with others. As Mindspan grows, we expect this role to grow with it. We are excited to invest in someone who wants to take on increasing responsibility over time.

Comprehensive health, dental, vision, and family benefits, and a matching retirement contribution.

Competitive salary ($75,000 to $110,000), depending on experience.