Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. TalkingPoints is an award-winning education technology nonprofit focused on enhancing student outcomes through family-school partnerships. The Senior Research Associate will conduct rigorous research, manage data analysis, and communicate findings to various stakeholders to inform product development and partnership strategies.
Responsibilities
- Execute research studies from rapid descriptive analyses to quasi-experimental designs
- Develop and maintain clear research plans: defining questions, selecting methods, setting timelines, and tracking deliverables from kickoff through dissemination
- Manage, clean, and analyze data from TalkingPoints’ platform, partner datasets, and public sources (e.g., NCES, state data systems)
- Apply methods appropriate to the question, from exploratory and descriptive analyses to advanced approaches including quasi-experimental design, hierarchical linear modeling, and natural language processing
- Use R/Python for data analysis and visualization, SQL and tools like Sigma for data exploration, and AI tools (including coding assistants) to accelerate work from analysis to research communications
- Turn findings into clear, compelling impact stories — presentations, reports, and publications — for district partners, internal teams, and senior leadership
- Generate insights that inform product development and partnership strategy
- Collaborate closely with cross-functional partners to connect research to organizational priorities and support revenue generation
- Engage with external district contacts in coordination with the Senior Research Manager and Director of Research
- Co-develop study questions and approaches with internal and external partners
Skills
- Master's degree in social science, education, public policy, or related field with strong research methods training
- 5+ years applied research experience focused on K-12 education, in nonprofit/edtech/mission-driven settings (academic-only or district-only backgrounds unlikely to be a fit)
- Expertise in mixed methods design and data analysis, including comfort with proxy measures and honest communication of methodological tradeoffs
- Strong project management and follow-through, with minimal need for oversight
- Excellent communicator who can tailor research findings to diverse non-research audiences through clear writing and data visualizations
- Strong cross-functional collaborator
- Experience with public education datasets (e.g., NCES, state longitudinal systems)
- Proficiency in R or Python; working knowledge of SQL and self-service data tools (e.g., Sigma)
- Comfort using AI tools in research workflows
- Experience handling PII/sensitive data appropriately
- PhD with quantitative/mixed methods focus
- Background in family engagement, attendance, early math, and/or early literacy research
- Experience with Snowflake or similar cloud data warehouses
Benefits
- Health insurance
- Benefits
- Flexible time off
- 401K match
- Annual professional development benefit
- Flexibility to work remotely
Company Overview
Company H1B Sponsorship