Predoctoral Scholar

Pre-Doctoral Scholar Position

The Harris School of Public Policy invites applications for a one-year Pre-Doctoral Scholar position. The successful candidate will work closely under the supervision of Professor James Robinson and will contribute to ongoing research at the intersection of policy, behavior, and organizations. Ideal applicants will be intellectually curious, analytically strong, and interested in deepening their research experience before pursuing a PhD or related academic and policy career.

This position offers a valuable opportunity to engage in rigorous scholarship, support high-impact research projects, and develop skills in research design, data analysis, literature review, and academic collaboration within a dynamic interdisciplinary environment.

Responsibilities include:

• Assisting in managing the research effort.
• Assisting in planning, conducting, and analysis of semi-structured interviews.
• Preparing, cleaning, and analyzing interview and survey data.
• Contributing to the preparation of high-quality journal articles and presenting results at conferences and stakeholder events.
• Assisting with preparation of reports, manuscripts, and other documents.
• Maintaining technical and administrative support for a research project.
• Analyzing and maintaining data and/or specimens. Conducting literature reviews. Assisting with preparation of reports, manuscripts, and other documents.
• Installing, setting up, and performing experiments; interacting with students and other laboratory staff under the direction of the principal investigator.
• Maintaining recruiting and scheduling research subjects; assisting with developing or amending study protocols; assisting with developing data collection tools; assisting with building databases; and providing general administrative support. Has general awareness in research techniques or methods, regulatory policies and procedures, and relevant scientific field.
• Performing other related work as needed.

Minimum qualifications include a college or university degree in a related field and knowledge and skills developed through less than 2 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Preferred qualifications include a bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline by the time the position begins, including but not limited to psychology, marketing, behavioral economics, decision science, organizational behavior, management studies, business. Experience conducting interviews and survey research, analyzing the resulting data, and familiarity with conducting randomized survey experiments and creating compelling data visualizations of information and results, and using econometric methods.

Proficiency in leading statistical packages (e.g., STATA, R, SPS) and programming qualtrics surveys. Professional/academic level English language skills, both written and verbal. Excellent organizational and time management skills with meticulous attention to detail. Ability to work collaboratively with an interdisciplinary team.

The position will be located in Chicago, IL.

Application documents required include a resume/CV, cover letter summarizing your qualifications, areas of expertise, research interests, career goals, and a statement of how you meet the qualifications described above, and two references contact information.