"Research Area Specialist Assoc"

Professor Amanda Kowalski is currently seeking candidates for a Research Area Associate in the Population Studies Center (PSC) in the Institute for Social Research. PSC unites an interdisciplinary community of scholars across sociology, economics, public health, biostatistics, and more with a strong training program for both pre- and post- doctoral scholars.

This position will collaborate closely with a research team on projects in the fields of health economics and applied econometrics and will contribute mainly on the project entitled 'Tradeoffs Between the Equal and Equitable Distribution of a Scarce Health Resource: Evidence from a Large Randomized Natural Experiment with Targeting by Health, Social Vulnerability, and Race,' a large interdisciplinary project joint with David Chan of Stanford and John Ayanian, Sarah Burgard, Sandro Cinti, James Henderson, Fiona Linn, Yanna Krupnikov, and Abram Wagner of the University of Michigan and Michigan Medicine.

For examples of previous research and related press coverage, see https://psc.isr.umich.edu/profile/kowalski-amanda/ Research Area Specialists are involved in all stages of the research process and are expected to work independently within the scope of their responsibilities.

This position is ideal for candidates looking to develop their empirical research skills in preparation for applying to PhD programs in economics. For continuing education, research assistants have opportunities to attend weekly seminars in economics and to get feedback on their proposed research ideas.

Researchers will support specialized projects central to the larger research projects discussed in the job summary within a team environment. Researchers will work independently analyzing data, interpreting results, designing supplementary analyses based on results, suggesting options for improving quality, identifying potential problems, and recommending and implementing solutions. Researchers will also be instrumental in identifying and applying for data, developing, and submitting IRB applications, and hiring and training research assistants. Communication and project management skills are essential for interacting as a liaison with coauthors, researchers in other departments, data providers, and external entities. Researchers will draft and edit manuscripts, grant applications, and presentations.

Researchers interact directly with the assigned Professor, the co-authours, and other research assistants on a regular basis. Candidates should have a long-term interest in pursuing research related to economics.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in economics or a related field and 1 to 3 years of related experience
• Prior experience with data analysis and data analysis software.
• Candidate must be highly detail-oriented and display competence at following directions.
• Candidate must possess excellent written and oral communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree in economics or related field
• Prior experience in health economics or public finance
• Programming experience, particularly in working with large datasets in software such as Stata, SAS, R, or Matlab.

Shift: Days, Monday - Friday 9am-6pm with an hour for lunch

The salary range is $56,000 to $63,000. A higher salary may be possible for well-qualified candidates based on education and experience. Up to six candidates may be hired for this position.

This is a 12-month term-limited position with the possibility of renewal based upon availability of work, funding, and performance. Strong preference will be given to applicants who have availability to work the two years of the term limit assignment. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.

To be considered for the position, you will need to provide all elements of the following as a single document with your application:

• A current cover letter describing: Your interest in this position and how you learned about it; The start and end dates during which you would be available to fill this position; Your familiarity with programming languages (e.g. Stata, SAS, Matlab, ArcGIS); Your prior experience as a research assistant, in the private sector, and/or with independent research projects; A previous experience that involved working in a team environment; Names, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers of 3 references (letters not required)
• A Current CV: All relevant undergraduate and graduate transcripts (unofficial is fine); A written list of classes currently in-progress and taken in the past that are in economics, mathematics, or statistics. Please indicate the name of the course, semester/year taken, the institution at which the course was taken, and grade attained.; An original research paper (if available) or writing sample

To ensure we receive your full application, please also email Professor Kowalski kowalski@nber.org and current research assistant Griffin Shufeldt shufeldt@umich.edu a single PDF document named 'Lastname_Firstname' containing the materials.

The first-round interview consists of a data task exemplary of the work conducted by research assistants on our team.