Advanced Specialist, Government Relations

Description – Support state-level policy and legislative strategy, delivering insight and analysis that shapes government engagement and informs business decisions across a complex, regulated environment.

The Advanced Specialist, Government Relations supports Pearson’s US Government Relations (USGR) function by tracking, analysing, and interpreting state-level legislative and policy developments that impact the business and its strategic priorities.

Working closely with senior colleagues, this role plays a key part in delivering clear, timely, and well-structured policy materials that inform internal decision-making and external engagement. The position partners with internal stakeholders across business units to ensure that policy analysis reflects operational realities and supports effective advocacy strategies.

This is a highly analytical and detail-oriented role, combining legislative tracking, policy research, and stakeholder coordination within a fast-paced and evolving regulatory environment.

• Monitor and track state legislative and regulatory activity across assigned policy areas, identifying and escalating relevant developments to senior Government Relations colleagues
• Support assigned business units by developing and maintaining policy scorecards and tracking progress against key business and Government Relations objectives
• Review introduced legislation and regulatory proposals, summarising key provisions, status, and potential business implications
• Produce and maintain recurring updates including legislative trackers, policy digests, alerts, and concise summaries to support internal planning and responsiveness
• Support the development of internal briefings by organising research, synthesising inputs, and preparing clear written materials for use by the USGR team
• Partner with internal stakeholders to validate business context, gather relevant data, and ensure policy materials accurately reflect operational considerations
• Provide timely and accurate support to state Government Relations leads by responding to requests for background research, bill comparisons, and impact analysis (including financial, operational, compliance, and customer considerations)
• Draft and support the development of policy-facing materials such as:
• One-pagers
• Talking points
• Issue summaries
• Q&A documents
• Comment letters
• Testimony support materials
• Background memos
  
  Ensuring alignment with established USGR positioning
• Support preparation for meetings with policymakers and external stakeholders by assembling briefing packs, agendas, and detailed notes
• Track key legislative deadlines, hearings, and engagement milestones, maintaining well-organised records and documentation
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of internal tracking and documentation processes, including template development, version control, and document management
• Utilise legislative tracking and monitoring tools to ensure consistent, high-quality policy reporting and analysis

• Bachelor’s degree in Public Policy, Political Science, Law, Economics, Education Policy, or a related field
• 2–5 years of experience in government relations, public policy, legislative affairs, or policy analysis (or closely related environments)
• Hands-on experience with legislative tracking, bill analysis, and policy research within a government relations or public affairs function
• Strong writing and editing skills, with the ability to produce clear, concise, and well-structured policy materials for internal stakeholders
• Good understanding of state legislative processes and how policy decisions are shaped and influenced
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, work to deadlines, and maintain…