Genetic Counselor

About the Role

The Office of Chief Medical Examiner works to support public health and deliver fair, science-based justice through forensic medicine and laboratory science. Its mission is to provide answers and support to families and communities during periods of serious loss. The agency’s guiding CARES values are Commitment, Accountability, Resilience, Excellence, and Service.

What You’ll Do

This position is focused on strengthening sudden death prevention efforts by expanding genetic counseling, molecular genetic testing, and referrals for surviving relatives to clinical care. The role involves counseling families before and after testing, helping interpret genetic findings, and supporting coordination with partner clinical programs.

• Offer pre-test counseling by explaining the decedent’s genetic results, how those findings may affect relatives, and the benefits and drawbacks of family testing and follow-up care.
• Support families with referral information, clinical options, and resource guidance, and obtain informed consent for agency testing.
• Provide post-test counseling, review results and recommendations, and connect family members with the right clinical services.
• Prepare genetic counseling summaries and draft targeted variant testing reports.
• Help medical examiners understand and interpret genetic test outcomes and maintain regular communication with outside clinical partners.
• Take part in educational work such as lectures, grand rounds, and mentoring genetic counseling students.
• Contribute to scientific writing, including manuscripts and poster presentations for medical literature.

Minimum Qualifications

A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college in criminalistics, forensic science, chemistry, biology, physics, molecular genetics, genetics, biochemistry, molecular biology, entomology, anthropology, ecology, or a closely related scientific or engineering discipline is required.

Assignment levels require progressively increasing experience in criminalistics, forensic science, or analytic chemistry. Level I-B requires at least 1 year of satisfactory full-time experience or an equivalent education-and-experience combination. Level II requires 1 additional year at Level I-B, or 2 total years of qualifying experience, or an equivalent mix. Level III requires 2 years at Level I-B and/or II, or 3 total years of qualifying experience, or an equivalent combination. Level IV requires 3 years at Level I-B, II, and/or III, or 4 total years of qualifying experience, or an equivalent combination.

Application Notes

Applicants should submit a resume and cover letter to the agency careers address referenced in the posting, and should include Job ID #784505. Only candidates chosen for an interview will be contacted. Final appointment is subject to Office of Management & Budget approval.

Work Authorization

Authorization to work in the United States is mandatory for this role. Sponsorship is not provided for international employees, including for visa applications, extensions, status changes, or STEM/OPT cases. Applicants must meet all qualifications at the time they apply.

Residency Requirement

City residency is not required for this position.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an equal opportunity employer that values a diverse workforce and maintains a workplace free from discrimination and harassment based on protected characteristics such as sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, pregnancy, and other legally protected statuses.