Research Associate, Workforce Development at American Institutes for Research

Overview:

Join AIR as a Research Associate with our Workforce Development program area, as we support the healthy, productive, and evolving workforce vital to the United States’ economy and democracy. Our experts have decades of experience in workforce policy and practice, labor policy, postsecondary transformation, economics, and adult education. We work together towards addressing structural barriers in the workforce across race, class, and gender. We provide rigorous research and evaluation, and results-driven technical assistance and training throughout the United States at all levels of the system.

Our work focuses on:

• Career and technical education
• Postsecondary education
• Workforce policy and programs
• Adult learning
• Human capital solutions
• Individuals with disabilities

The Workforce Program Area (WPA) focuses on the full employment cycle in the U.S., including workforce readiness, recruitment, selection, performance management, occupational training and postsecondary education, and improving employment and life outcomes for all people, with special attention to underserved populations. Our team is passionate about improving workforce outcomes to expand economic opportunity. The person in this position may have a particular focus area within the program area but will support work across the WPA. Use your experience, knowledge, and education to help us deliver on our mission: to contribute to a better, more equitable world.

Candidates hired for the position may work remotely within the United States (U.S.) or from one of our U.S. office locations. This does not include U.S. territories. 

About AIR:

Established in 1946, with headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, AIR is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit institution that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance to solve some of the most urgent challenges in the U.S. and around the world. We advance evidence in the areas of education, health, the workforce, human services, and international development to create a better, more equitable world.

AIR’s commitment to diversity goes beyond legal compliance to its full integration in our strategy, operations, and work environment. At AIR, we define diversity broadly, considering everyone’s unique life and community experiences. We believe that embracing diverse perspectives, abilities/disabilities, racial/ethnic and cultural backgrounds, styles, ages, genders, gender identities and expressions, education backgrounds, and life stories drives innovation and employee engagement. Learn more about AIR's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategy and hear from our staff by clicking here.

The responsibilities for the position include:

• Conduct literature reviews and contribute to evidence syntheses. This includes searching for and identifying relevant literature, reviewing and extracting relevant insights, and drafting summary documents
• Coordinate or manage research study tasks, with assumption of greater responsibility over time, including developing and tracking project timelines, activities, and deliverables; supporting budget management; and preparing submissions for IRB and data governance review
• Conduct quantitative and/or qualitative data collection, including accessing extant data and assessing its utility for project needs; developing interview protocol and surveys; supporting participant recruitment; conducting interviews and note-taking; supporting survey implementation; and/or supporting advanced data analytics activities, such as machine learning.
• Clean, code, and analyze data from interviews, observations, surveys, and extant data using the appropriate research methods and software (e.g., STATA, R, NVIVO, or similar software)
• Write documents, portions of reports, briefs, charts, and graphs that describe and interpret findings of analyses clearly for the field
• Support new business and proposal development efforts by engaging in tasks such as researching funding opportunities, collecting and organizing required information, and writing proposal sections
• Support and help maintain relationships with partners, including other researchers and practitioners
• Clearly communicate knowledge of the project purpose and objectives to clients when necessary and represent AIR in a professional manner

Education, Knowledge, and Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree with a minimum of 2 years of experience OR Master’s Degree in Social Sciences (Public Policy, Sociology, Economics, Education, Psychology, etc.)
• Experience conducting qualitative and/or quantitative data collection, including survey design, administrative data collection, interviews, observations, and focus groups
• Experience conducting analysis of workforce or human service agencies’ client-centered services, such as by applying principles of behavioral economics, human centered design, or user-centered research to understand how to improve program delivery
• Experience with qualitative and/or quantitative data analysis software programs including STATA, R, NVIVO, or similar software
• Interest or experience in the public workforce system, sectoral training, unemployment insurance, registered apprenticeships, and other labor programs - is a plus but not required
• Demonstrated content knowledge in workforce development, postsecondary education, career and technical education, or related topics - is a plus but not required

Skills:

• Proficiency with the Microsoft Office Suite or the equivalent (word processing, spreadsheets, presentation software)
• Ability to work as a member of a team and independently
• Excellent organization, time management, and communication skills

Disclosures:

Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the U.S. on a full-time basis. Employment-based visa sponsorship (including H-1B sponsorship) is not available for this position. Depending on project work, qualified candidates may need to meet certain residency requirements.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability.

AIR adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo reference and background checks.

AIR’s Total Rewards Program, is designed to reward our staff competitively and motivate them to achieve our critical mission. This position offers an anticipated salary of $32.00/hr. Salary offers are made based on internal equity within the institution and external equity with competitive markets. Please note this is the annual salary range for candidates that are based in the United States.

AIR maintains a drug-free work environment.

Fraudulent Job Scams Warning & Disclaimer:

AIR is aware of individuals falsely presenting themselves as AIR representatives. Fraudulent job scams seek to extract sensitive information or money from victims. To protect yourself, please be aware that AIR recruitment will only email you from an “@air.org” domain. Please take extra caution while examining the email address, for example jdoe@air.org is correct and jdoe@aircareers.org is not a legitimate AIR email address. If you are unsure of the legitimacy of a communication you have received, please reach out to recruitment@air.org.

If you see a job scam, or lose money to one, report it to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. You can also report it to your state attorney general. Find out more about how to avoid scams at ftc.gov/scams.

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