Research Associate

What You’ll Do

Reporting to the Managing Director, Think Tank, the Research Associate, Think Tank supports the research and writing of both long- and short-term think tank research products. Working across research and policy areas at the direction of the Managing Director, they provide qualitative and quantitative research support to think tank staff and fellows as needed, such as conducting literature reviews of published academic and economic research, performing data analysis, fact-checking documents, and finalizing citations and bibliographies. They may be assigned to assist project and program managers with work conducted by external fellows or contract authors, support think tank convenings or events, and provide administrative support to the Managing Director. Eventually, Research Associates will have the opportunity to coauthor pieces of research and author blogs and fact sheets.

This is an individual contributing, nonmanagement, unionized role.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities

Research and Writing Assistance:

• Provide research assistance to think tank staff and fellows on research projects across policy areas the Roosevelt Institute studies
• Perform qualitative and quantitative research analyses, such as using a statistical programming language (e.g., R, Stata), creating an academic literature review, or fact-checking documents
• Finalize citations and bibliographies for Roosevelt products
• Work with the government relations (GR) team to help translate research into GR products, such as policy fact sheets, and with the communications team to translate research into social media posts or other external content
• With support, author op-eds, blog posts, and fact sheets, and eventually coauthor briefs and reports with fellows and staff

Program Assistance:

• Assist program managers or other think tank staff with the management of external and internal projects
• With guidance, communicate with senior scholars on Roosevelt projects
• Support think tank convenings and events, including note-taking, scheduling, and coordinating with external contacts as directed
• Assist with the preparation of reports and the presentation of information to research groups and at external meetings and seminars
• Support think tank contracting process as needed
• Pitch in on other tasks as they arise

What You’ll Have

• A bachelor’s degree is preferred.
• Familiarity with economics, political science, sociology, or other social science research skills
• Demonstrated ability to read, summarize, and describe academic research, particularly economic and political science research. Familiarity with statistical databases and quantitative analysis is required; experience with programs such as R or Stata is a plus.
• Strong writing, editing, and communications skills
• Strong organizational skills and the eagerness and adaptability to learn new things and work on multiple projects at once
• Interest in collaborating with teams and colleagues across an organization to execute products or assist with convenings and events
• This is an entry-level position. Experience in professional policy and/or research environments, such as think tanks, government or academic offices, or nonprofits, is a plus but not required.
• Passion for the Roosevelt Institute’s mission and strategy of intervening at the level of paradigm shift