Interdisciplinary Research Assistant — Barcelona Study

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The EURēCA! Student Assistants Program provides introductory opportunities forCU Denver undergraduates to engage in research and creative activities.

StudentsMUSTcomplete the self-paced EURēCA! Presentation and Quizzes in Canvas (30min) or meet with a EURēCA! advisor before applying for all EURēCA! positions. Register Here.

Employer/Dept: University of Colorado Denver Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities

Supervisor: Jeremy Németh, Ph.D. | College of Architecture and Planning

Job Title: EURēCA! Student Assistant for Interdisciplinary Research on Barcelona

Job Location: CU Denver Department of Urban and Regional Planning/ College of Architecture and Planning (CAP). This position can be flexible with some remote and some on-campus components.

Purpose: Barcelona’s Raval neighborhood has undergone profound social, economic, and physical transformations over the past several decades. Once characterized as a working-class and immigrant neighborhood, Raval has experienced extensive urban redevelopment, demographic change, cultural investment, and rapid tourism growth. These changes have generated ongoing debates about immigration, neighborhood stigma, housing affordability, gentrification, and community identity.

This faculty research project supports the writing of a scholarly book examining the historical and contemporary transformation of Barcelona’s Raval through interdisciplinary perspectives in urban studies, geography, sociology, history, and public policy. The project draws upon archival research, demographic analysis, urban policy, historical newspapers, municipal planning documents, and scholarly literature to better understand how immigration, stigma, and redevelopment have shaped one of Europe’s most studied urban neighborhoods.

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Position Description: As a member of the research team, the undergraduate research assistant will work closely with the faculty investigator to locate and organize scholarly materials, collect and analyze historical and contemporary data, summarize research findings, and develop research resources that directly support the book manuscript. Students will participate in an active research project while developing practical skills in social science and humanities research methods.

Duties and Responsibilities:

The undergraduate research assistant will support multiple aspects of the research process, including:

• Conduct literature searches using academic databases and library resources.
• Prepare annotated bibliographies and concise summaries of scholarly books, journal articles, and reports.
• Collect demographic, housing, tourism, immigration, and socioeconomic data from public databases and government sources.
• Conduct archival research using digital newspaper collections, municipal planning documents, historical reports, and other primary sources.
• Assist with organizing references using citation management software (e.g., Zotero).
• Compile historical timelines documenting major redevelopment projects, demographic shifts, policy changes, and community responses in Raval.
• Organize photographs, maps, and other visual materials with appropriate documentation and metadata.
• Verify citations, statistics, quotations, and historical information for manuscript preparation.
• Prepare weekly research memos summarizing completed work and identifying additional research opportunities.
• Participate in regular meetings with the faculty mentor to discuss progress and future research activities.

Skills and Knowledge Gained:

By the conclusion of the research experience, students will be able to:

• Conduct…