Postdoctoral Researcher

Position Overview

The Institute for Policy & Social Research (IPSR) is a designated research center for the social sciences, supporting social science researchers at the University of Kansas. IPSR supports faculty-led research centers, their directors, and a network of more than 100 affiliates, and staff.

The postdoctoral position will work closely with the PI and project staff to support analysis and research on health records for women within the United States. KPC has a portfolio of projects around the newly developed Care Board dashboard. The postdoctoral position is part of the research team and will work on projects closely tied on the Care Board and conduct their own independent research.

The position housed within the Kansas Population Center in the Institute for Policy & Social Research. The position reports to Dr. Misty Heggeness. The Kansas Population Center (KPC) is a designated research center for the population studies, supporting social science researchers and demographers at the University of Kansas and neighboring states in the Midwest. Its mission is to be the leading midwestern demographic research center covering births, deaths, and everything in the middle.

This position is a limited term appointment with an end date of 2/28/2027, with the possibility for extension.

Job Description

40% - Conduct quantitative modeling and research utilizing Stata or R on data obtained by the COBRE team consisting of health records of women who gave birth between 2018 and 2020. Methods include OLS, Logit, and Poisson Modeling, along with descriptive quantitative techniques and figure-making. This work will be done with the assistance of the team's data scientist.

40% - Lead at least one manuscript to completion throughout the course of the work, on the topic of new mother health. Task includes conducting literature reviews and writing the paper. This position will be the lead author on this paper. The topic can be chosen by the position holder, or the position holder can take over one of the existing preliminary manuscripts.

20% - Attend weekly team meetings on the Lawrence and Edwards campuses, and provide reviews and recommendations to team manuscripts presented in these meetings through shared Word documents.

Required Qualifications

1. PhD in economics, sociology, public policy, or related area conferred at the time of appointment, not to exceed six months from the date of hire.
2. Demonstrated knowledge in working with large household survey and administrative data as evidenced by application materials.
3. Effective communication skills and strong experience working in teams as evidenced in application materials.
4. Demonstrated interest in conducting research on women's health in rural communities and the ability to generate their own research agenda as evidenced by application materials and experience.

NOTE: To be appointed at the Postdoctoral Researcher title or equivalent title, it is necessary to have the Ph.D. in hand. Appointments made without a certified transcript indicating an earned doctorate are conditional hires and are appointed on an Acting basis not to exceed 6-months. Appointment duration will be extended upon final verification of degree.

This position requires a formal degree in the cited discipline area(s) to ensure that candidates have advanced knowledge, analytical skills and professional competencies necessary to perform the duties of the position. The level of degree is commonly recognized as the standard qualification for similar roles in the public and private sector, ensuring that the university remains competitive with industry aligned practices, enhances collaboration with external partners, and supports the delivery of services and programs that meet professional and market-driven expectations.

Preferred Qualifications

N/A

Additional Candidate Instructions

Complete and submit the online application and include:

• A cover letter explaining your interest in the position and an assessment of your skills related to the required and preferred qualifications
• Resume
• Names/contact information for three professional references.

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Application review begins Monday, 6/22/2026, and will continue until a qualified pool of applicants is identified.