Research Assistant

Overview

Economics professors Dan Benjamin (UCLA), David Cesarini (NYU), Patrick Turley (USC), statistical geneticist Alex Young (UCLA) and their co-authors hire full‑time research assistants at UCLA with start dates during the summer of 2025. We seek students interested in social‑science genomics: the identification of genetic variation associated with variation in behavior and other social‑science‑relevant phenotypes. Prior experience is not necessary. Rationale for applicants: interest in applying to a quantitative Ph.D. program (e.g., Economics, Statistics, Data Science, Genetics, Sociology) and pursuing an academic research career.

Former Benjamin Lab RAs have progressed to top PhD programs in economics and related disciplines at institutions including Harvard, MIT, MIT Sloan, Stanford, Yale, UChicago, Columbia, NYU, Wharton, Northwestern, UCSD, UMD, and UCSF over the past seven years.

Current projects include identifying genetic variants with causal effects on educational attainment and other traits, creating optimal genetic predictors for a range of traits, and developing new statistical methods. For examples of past research, see the Research section of the Benjamin lab publications.

• Develop new methods to analyze genetic data
• Data analysis in R and Python
• Background research and literature reviews for paper writing
• Draft sections of manuscripts for publication
• Visualize data for manuscripts and presentations

The budget for this position is $68,800 per year plus benefits.

To apply, submit the following documents to  (1) a cover letter describing interest and qualifications, (2) your resume, (3) unofficial or official transcript, (4) a writing sample (e.g., a course paper or research paper), and (5) names, e‑mail addresses, and phone numbers of 3 references (letters not required).

• Knowledge of one or more of R, Python, or STATA (Required)
• Strong work ethic and organizational skills (Required)
• Ability to work independently with minimal guidance (Required)
• Interest in genoeconomics (Required)
• Strong writing skills (Required)
• Knowledge of LaTeX (Preferred)
• Experience with Unix commands (Preferred)
• Familiarity with statistical analyses such as OLS, MLE, and PCA (Preferred)

Bachelor’s Degree in economics, statistics, mathematics, computer science, or genetics (Required).

Background check:
Continued employment contingent upon satisfactory background investigation.

Standard work hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Union/Policy Covered: 99-Policy Covered