Associate Researcher - 24265BR

Associate Researcher

Department: 
Social Welfare
Location/Division: 
University of Kansas Lawrence Campus
Work Location Assignment: 
Hybrid
Reg/Temp: 
Regular
Employee Class: 
U-Unclassified Professional Staff

Position Overview

The KU School of Social Welfare (KUSSW) seeks a full-time Associate Researcher to conduct program research, evaluation and data management in collaboration with project investigator. Specifically, this position develops, designs, conducts, monitors, and oversees select components for small and large-scale initiatives. The position will specialize in research and evaluation, data science projects, and social innovation work that supports initiatives’ missions to optimize the well-being of children, youth, and families.

KUSSW works with diverse community partners, including federal, state and community-based organizations, in their work to secure funding, bring key partners to the table, orchestrate large-scale data efforts, and conduct research, cost analysis, research and evaluation. We are looking for individuals who are passionate about impacting social change for good. The person in this position will promote healthy, thriving communities by conducting research and evaluations of new or existing programs.

The successful applicant should have experience in social sciences or a related field, prior experience working with community partners, collecting, managing, analyzing, and reporting both quantitative and qualitative data, and sharing findings with partners outside of the academic community. The applicant should also be able to facilitate continuous quality improvement (CQI), actively troubleshoot problems that may arise, and quickly develop and implement solutions. Experience working on issues related to child welfare systems and children and families is helpful. This position is contingent upon funding.

Job Description

40% Research and Evaluation Project Coordination
  • Ensure that the projects meet the goals and objectives of the funder in cooperation with federal, state, and local partners
  • Track and coordinate deliverables, work plan, and timelines for timely and high-quality completion and of work
  • Plan, prepare, and facilitate meetings involving internal staff and external partners
  • Serve as point of contact between KUSSW and federal/state/local partners related to research and evaluation projects
  • Support partner programs in accessing, understanding, and using their data and research and evaluation findings
  • Supervise student hourlies, graduate students, or research assistants in carrying out research activities
30% Data Management, Analysis, and Reporting
  • Manage and secure program data
  • Collaborate with programs to identify and implement data collection protocols and tools
  • Identify, prepare, and support data files, syntax, and analysis for evaluation and research projects, including advanced statistical analyses as appropriate
  • Assist with data formatting and processing, as well as analysis using Excel, SPSS, R, Dedoose, and other applications
  • Design, implement, and maintain data-informed reports and analytics solutions including data visualizations and dashboards for different audiences (e.g., community stakeholders, policy makers, scholars)
20% Research Methodology and Synthesis
  • In collaboration with project PIs, develop, design, administer, and conduct select components of research projects.
  • Collaboratively develop plans and seeks funding for new research efforts and projects
  • Prepare charts, tables, graphs, and written summaries of research and evaluation data and findings using excel and other data visualization applications
  • Assist PIs with preparation of written research and evaluation reports and manuscripts for publication, serving as a co-author as appropriate
10% Other duties
  • Special projects and other duties as assigned.

Position Requirements

  1. Some in-state travel required (5%).
  2. Position is hybrid, a combination of on-site and remote work as deemed by the supervisor.

Required Qualifications

  1. Master’s Degree in social science or related field and three years of related experience.
  2. One year of experience managing complex data, including primary data collection and administrative datasets.
  3. One year of experience analyzing data and visualizing data to inform practice or programmatic learning as demonstrated by work experience.
  4. Excellent written communication skills as demonstrated by application materials and previous work history.
  5. Excellent organizational skills and experience working independently and as part of a team, as demonstrated in application materials and work experience.
  6. One year of experience using statistical analysis software, such as SPSS, SAS, Stata, or R.

Preferred Qualifications

  1. Doctorate in social science or related field
  2. 1 year of experience in studying children and/or youth and/or families, as demonstrated in application materials.
  3. 1 year of experience communicating research and facilitating collaboration between stakeholders and community partners, demonstrated by application materials.
  4. One year of experience using qualitative analytic software, such as Dedoose.
  5. One year of experience using Microsoft Access or other relational database management system.
  6. One year of experience with Institutional Analysis.

Additional Candidate Instructions

A complete online application consists of the following:
  • Resume
  • Cover letter
  • Writing sample
  • Contact information for up to three references
Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Review of applications begins on March 6th and continues as needed to collect a pool of qualified applicants.

Contact Information to Applicants

Kaela Byers
kaela@ku.edu

Advertised Salary Range

Minimum $60,000

Work Schedule

Standard M-F during the hours of 8am -5pm

Application Review Begins

06-Mar-2023

Anticipated Start Date

03-Apr-2023

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Posting Information
Posting ID:
24265BR
Department:
Social Welfare
Primary Campus:
University of Kansas Lawrence Campus
Work Location Assignment:
Hybrid
Reg/Temp:
Regular
Employee Class:
U-Unclassified Professional Staff
Application Review Begins:
06-Mar-2023