Entry Level Social Policy Research Jobs (NOW HIRING)

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire seeks a Research Scientist to join its Center for Social Policy in Practice, home to the New Hampshire Early Care and Education Research Consortium. The Consortium is a network of researchers and research users dedicated to improving New Hampshire's child care system through stronger data.

This position will bring a developmental psychology, child development, or early childhood education perspective to a collaborative research team. The role is primarily data-focused and will include sourcing, cleaning, merging, coding, managing, analyzing, and documenting quantitative data in Stata. Typical data sources include administrative records, national and local survey data, program data, and other datasets relevant to child care, family economic security, and social policy.

The Research Scientist will help translate data into useful findings for policymakers, public agencies, philanthropy, service providers, and other community partners. Responsibilities include preparing research briefs, reports, fact sheets, presentations, data visualizations, and other public-facing materials designed to support evidence-informed decision-making.

Competitive candidates will have a doctoral degree, or a master's degree plus three years of closely related research experience. Candidates should also have strong quantitative data management skills, expertise using Stata, and familiarity with early childhood education, child care policy, developmental psychology, child development, public policy, or a related social science field. Experience with administrative data, data visualization, grant-supported research, and communicating findings to practitioner or policy audiences is a plus. A hybrid work arrangement is acceptable.

Data Management (65%)

• Source, clean, manage, and/or merge an array of quantitative datasets in Stata, including national survey data, programmatic data, and/or federal and state administrative data.

• Document decision-making processes and respond to feedback.

Analysis & Presentation of Results (20%)

• Analyze data, often using descriptive techniques, occasionally utilizing more complex methodologies.

• Prepare diverse materials for publication and dissemination, including short research briefs and reports, infographics, videos, journal articles, fact sheets, webinars, or presentations.

Technical Assistance (10%)

• Liaise with nonprofit partners, research sponsors, research colleagues, and/or state stakeholders to identify and respond to research and data needs to drive social policy-relevant decision-making.

Other Duties as Required (5%)

• Perform related duties as assigned

Requirements

Minimum Acceptable Education & Experience:

• Doctorate in public policy, sociology, economics, or related social science discipline OR master's degree in one of these fields with at least three years of closely related research experience.

• Expertise with Stata statistical software, particularly data cleaning and management.

• Understanding of policy issues affecting people with low and moderate incomes

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Strong technical proficiency in Stata for day-to-day analysis

• Technical proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Canva, and ArcGIS or Datawrapper

• Robust background in early childhood education (ECE) research and policy, including previous use of administrative child care licensing data, familiarity with data and research related to the cost of child care, school funding, and educational policy.

• Familiarity with the ECE policy landscape

• Interest in learning and contributing to processes around state data systems

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with grant application and reporting procedures.

• Experience with data visualization and/or map making.

Applicant Instructions:

Applicants should be prepared to upload the following documents when applying online within the My Experience: Resume/CV section of the application: (Maximum of 5 Documents)

• Resume/CV

• Cover Letter

Applications that are missing any of the required items may not move forward for consideration. Additional uploaded documents not requested in the position announcement will not be reviewed.

Please be advised that this position is supported by external sponsor funding. As such, continued employment in this role is contingent upon the availability of those external funds. If, for any reason, the sponsor funding is reduced or discontinued, employment may be subject to modification or termination in accordance with applicable policies and procedures.

The University of New Hampshire is an R1 Carnegie classification research institution providing comprehensive, high-quality undergraduate and graduate programs of distinction. UNH is located in Durham on a 188-acre campus, 60 miles north of Boston and 8 miles from the Atlantic coast and is convenient to New Hampshire's lakes and mountains. There is a student enrollment of 13,000 students, with a full-time faculty of over 600, offering 90 undergraduate and more than 70 graduate programs. The University actively promotes a dynamic learning environment in which qualified individuals of differing perspectives, life experiences, and cultural backgrounds pursue academic goals with mutual respect and shared inquiry.

EEO Statement

The University System of New Hampshire is an Equal Opportunity/Equal Access employer. The University System is committed to creating an environment that values and supports diversity and inclusiveness across our campus communities and encourages applications from qualified individuals who will help us achieve this mission. The University System prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or marital status.

Compensation Pay Range:

The pay range for this position is listed above. Actual offer will be based on skills, qualifications, experience, and internal equity, in addition to relevant business considerations. More information on benefits can be found here: USNH Employee Benefits | Human Resources

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