Technical Research Analyst

MDRC is seeking a Technical Research Analyst with experience with public policy research, data management, and quantitative analysis to join its Postsecondary Education policy group. MDRC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization that uses experimental studies and technical assistance projects to build and use knowledge in the social and education policy fields. The Postsecondary Education policy area at MDRC focuses on programs designed to help students with low incomes succeed in community colleges.

Our projects include multisite random assignment trials and technical assistance efforts involving thousands of college students across the country, and draw upon behavioral science, predictive modeling, and other advanced quantitative techniques. Technical Research Analysts in the Postsecondary Education (PSE) group have the opportunity to work as a part of multidisciplinary teams on current social policy issues in a dynamic and challenging environment, alongside leading public policy experts.

The Technical Research Analyst will assist the PSE Senior Data Manager in setting data management and processing practices for PSE’s portfolio of work, including identifying the right balance between realizing cross-project efficiencies vs. allowing flexibility for the pursuit of project-specific objectives. The role will also be heavily involved with quantitative analysis and will contribute broadly to the development, production, and dissemination of MDRC’s community college work.

Key responsibilities include:

• Overseeing the collection, processing, and analysis of a variety of data sets, including project management responsibilities and supervising junior staff members.
• Helping to develop and maintain best practices and tools for effective, efficient, and accurate data work across PSE’s portfolio.
• Active involvement in various stages of research and technical assistance projects, from proposals to project design to analysis and reporting.
• Writing and reviewing code to clean and analyze data; running statistical models and performing data analysis to identify the impacts of social programs.
• Contributing to analytical sections of reports and proposals.
• Developing management information systems (MIS) and providing support for system users.
• Opportunities to present findings to practitioner, researcher, and policymaker audiences.
• Possible travel to visit program sites in the field.

We are looking for candidates with strong academic backgrounds and work experience in quantitative research and in analyzing and managing data (including domains such as data engineering, information architecture, and data quality control). The ideal candidate will be a passionate process-minded problem solver—someone who relishes the intricacies of writing code to clean and manage difficult data and who enjoys thinking about how to establish processes that are simultaneously efficient and flexible.

This role is a fit for someone who loves data and thrives on engaging in the intellectual puzzle of solving data problems. A strong candidate will have:

• A master’s degree in economics, public policy, statistics, mathematics, or social science, or a bachelor’s degree plus equivalent work experience.
• A demonstrated interest in policy research.
• Intermediate or advanced experience with R.
• Experience with Microsoft Office (especially Word and Excel).
• Experience with CRM software (for example, Microsoft or Salesforce).
• Strong communication and writing skills.
• Excellent attention to detail.

This position is part of a collective bargaining unit under Social Policy Worker United (SPWU) – Local 57 of the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME).

Location: The hybrid position can be based in either MDRC’s New York City, Oakland, Washington DC or Los Angeles office.

Compensation and benefits: The salary offered is $74K – $80K based on professional experience. Comprehensive benefits and relocation assistance offered. Some on-the-job training will be provided. Please see “What to expect from MDRC’s recruitment process” for more information.

Instructions: When submitting your application, please…