Up Junior Research Assistant

The RAIDS Project seeks up to three Step Up research assistants to help document the dynamics of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids and the communities impacted by enforcement. As members of the RAIDS Team, research assistants will independently gather primary data and complete essential data management tasks, including data cleaning, verification, and coding. Data collection involves systematically reviewing and coding publicly available news media reports to identify and triangulate key details of immigration enforcement actions, including timing, location, and scope of raids.

This position offers hands‑on training in applied social science research and is especially well suited for students interested in public policy, sociology, crimmigration, political science, data science, or related fields. Beyond a shared core of data coding, research assistants are matched to additional research tasks based on their interests and strengths—ranging from qualitative interview analysis and legal and policy review to science communication and course development.

It is an excellent fit for students seeking structured, entry‑level research experience with room to build a broad set of applied skills. No prior data handling or research experience is required; training will be provided.

Research assistants work alongside Principal Investigator Dr. Tatiana Padilla and project collaborators including Professor Chris Uggen and Research Directors Mimi and Nayeli Quiles, who lead training and provide guidance on coding protocols and quality standards.

All research assistants contribute to the project’s core dataset by coding reports of immigration enforcement activity drawn from media, legal, and administrative sources, with full training provided on the first day of the internship. Beyond this shared foundation, assistants rank their preferences across the tasks below and are matched to those that best fit their interests and skills.

• Immigration raid report coding. Reviewing source documents and applying a structured coding scheme to capture the key details of each enforcement event—the shared core that anchors the dataset.
• Qualitative interview coding. Cleaning interview transcripts, applying a coding framework to identify key themes, and flagging compelling quotes from a study of international students’ experiences with recent immigration enforcement.
• Sanctuary policy and law review. Conducting a systematic review of sanctuary policies across U.S. jurisdictions—identifying enactment dates, end dates, and key provisions—and auditing AI‑generated policy codings for accuracy.
• Social media strategy and content creation. Developing and executing a social media strategy that translates ongoing research into accessible content for a broad public audience, at roughly one to two posts per week.
• Academic conference presentation design. Translating research findings into a visually compelling, scholarly slide deck for an August academic conference.
• Cr immigration course development. Supporting the creation of an original course on crimmigration, from identifying scholarly readings and mapping key themes to assisting with the recording and editing of lecture content.

June – August 2026

$16.51

20 hours per week. Requires in‑person attendance on Mondays 9:30‑5:30, plus an additional 8‑hour workday and one 4‑hour workday. Synchronous and asynchronous work, remote with option to work in person.

• Must be enrolled participants in the Step Up Achieve Summer Program
• Strong attention to detail
• Strong problem‑solving skills
• Ability to work independently
• Highly motivated and self‑directed
• Ability to search for, read, and critically assess online sources
• Ability to discern, extract, and verify relevant information from news media and public reports

• Interest in pursuing graduate‑level research in the social sciences
• Second language skills, beyond English
• Writing, communication, or design skills, which are an asset for certain project tasks

Retirement plan options are available for Civil Service, Faculty, Labor‑Represented, Professional & Administrative, and Temp Casual classifications. The University of Minnesota recognizes and values the importance of diversity and inclusion in enriching the employment experience of its employees and in supporting the academic mission. The University is committed to attracting and retaining employees with varying identities and backgrounds. The University of Minnesota provides equal access to and opportunity in its programs, facilities, and employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, disability, public assistance status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.