Part-time Undergraduate Research Assistant supporting Public Affairs Media and Research – Hybri

Part-time Undergraduate Research Assistant supporting Public Affairs Media and Research – Hybrid Chicago Loop Office

Apply now Job no: 503845 Work type: Intermittent Location: Chicago - 300 E Randolph St Capability Area: Public Affairs and Media

NORC at the University of Chicago seeks a qualified part-time Undergraduate Research Assistant to support its Public Affairs and Media Research Department in our Chicago Loop office.

The undergraduate Research Assistant is responsible for providing general support on research projects, including NORC’s Civic Health & Election Project, which provides an understanding of the electorate’s experiences, attitudes, and policy priorities across all 50 states. The ideal candidate is curious, detail‑oriented, and possesses a strong understanding of social science research concepts. The successful candidate will provide general research support and contribute to various facets of the research process from conducting background research, testing survey instruments, cleaning data, fact checking, and supporting reporting activities.

This is a hybrid role based in our Chicago Loop office, with a minimum of one day per week in the office.

• Provide general research support on quantitative and qualitative projects on a range of topics.
• Prepare background research including literature reviews and environmental scans.
• Test data collection instruments and systems.
• Assist with data preparation, data cleaning, and coding.
• Conduct statistical analyses of survey data for research reports or ad-hoc as needed.
• Contribute to the preparation of reports, tables, and graphs based on survey findings.
• Conduct quality control tasks including fact checking.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

• Enrolled full‑time in an undergraduate program in a relevant field including—but not limited to—political science, sociology, public policy, statistics, survey methodology, or other social science discipline.
• Proficiency with Microsoft 365 applications, including MS Teams.
• Experience or willingness to learn new computer skills and computer‑based data analysis (e.g. Stata, SAS, and/or R).
• Outstanding interpersonal, critical reasoning, analytic, and writing skills.
• Demonstrated attentiveness to detailed tasks, strong organizational skills, and ability to work both independently and collaboratively as part of a team.
• Strong problem‑solving capabilities.
• Upper‑level coursework in relevant fields preferred.

The pay for this position is $20/hour.

This position is classified as intermittent. Intermittent staff are eligible to participate in NORC’s retirement program. NORC contributes directly to this account without any required employee contributions. In addition, intermittent staff are eligible to make pre‑tax or post‑tax contributions as part of NORC’s Supplemental Retirement Plan. Intermittent staff who meet tenure requirements are eligible for three days of holiday pay. All staff at NORC, along with their significant others and dependent children who live at home, can receive free counseling and referrals through NORC’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

NORC is committed to equity and transparency in its pay practices. We publish salary ranges and benefit information for every job. The listed hiring range reflects what we, in good faith, expect to pay at the time of posting, though actual compensation may vary and may be adjusted over time. A candidate’s placement within the range depends on factors such as competencies, education, qualifications, experience, skills, performance, and organizational needs.

NORC is an equal opportunity employer. NORC evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, sexual orientation, and other legally protected characteristics.