A cover letter is required for this position. The cover letter should specifically address why you are interested in this position, describe specific skills and experiences in your history, and directly relate them to the responsibilities of, and qualification for this position. The Career Portal system only accepts your cover letter as the first page of your resume document.

This is a one-year, term-limited appointment at 50% effort.

The Youth Policy Lab, a joint research center of the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and the Institute for Social Research, envisions a world where partner-driven and policy-centered research fuels positive social change. Our mission is to inform youth-related public policy decisions by analyzing data and evaluating programs to help our partners answer their most pressing questions. For more information, please visit us at www.youthpolicylab.umich.edu. 

YPL seeks someone to join our team as a Project Manager, with a particular focus on supporting projects related to early literacy, early math, and school cell phone policies. You will report to the YPL Senior Project Manager, and will work closely with other YPL Project Managers, YPL Faculty Co-Directors, and data analysts.

What you'll do:

• Support all phases of the research project, including design, timeline, data collection and analysis, personnel and resource management, project deliverables, and product dissemination.

• Conduct interviews and focus group data collection and analysis. 

• Analyze and revise a tool for evaluating early mathematics curriculum quality. 

• Be the primary liaison for research partners to establish working relationships, build trust, and gather data.

• Create data tables and figures, generate infographics and dashboards, and write brief summaries of analysis results.

• Work with PIs, Data Analysts, and other team members to interpret and visualize data for non-technical and policy-making audiences.

• Help to create memos, presentations, briefs, reports, and/or web-based resources; present findings at public events.

We'd like to hear from you if you have:

• Graduate-level degree in statistics, public policy, public health, education, political science, economics or a relevant social science discipline, or equivalent.

• Familiarity with PK-12 education systems, early mathematics education, education policy. 

• Experience with all phases of a research or evaluation project (project design, scheduling, personnel and resource management, data collection and analysis, delivery and dissemination); managing client relationships and expectations; managing risk.

• Knowledge of all the following areas with at least 2 or more years on-the-job experience in at least two of them:

  • Qualitative research: Demonstrated understanding of qualitative data collection and analysis methods, including interviews, focus groups, observations, and surveys. 

  • Research and evaluation: Knowledge of social science research methods and concepts; understanding of program evaluation concepts and practices.

  • Public policy skills: Basic understanding of local/state/federal policymaking processes, funding mechanisms, and social program delivery.

  • Writing and communication: Drafting non-technical briefs and reports for a public or public-sector audience; use of statistical analyses in non-academic writing; summarizing academic research and quantitative analyses into policy-relevant messages.

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

A hybrid work schedule will be available to work two days onsite and one day remotely. 

The Institute for Social Research (ISR) at the University of Michigan seeks to create a community of respect and authentic collaboration by recruiting and retaining individuals that represent a variety of voices as a reflection of our commitment to serve the people of Michigan, to maintain the excellence of the university, and to ground our research in varied disciplines, perspectives, and ways of knowing and learning.

Benefits at the University of Michigan

In addition to a career filled with purpose and opportunity, U-M offers a comprehensive benefits package to help you stay well, protect yourself and your family, and plan for a secure future. Benefits include generous time off; retirement plan with two-for-one matching contributions after the first year; many choices for comprehensive health insurance; life insurance; long-term disability coverage; and flexible spending accounts for healthcare and dependent care expenses. Learn more about U-M benefits.

The University of Michigan conducts background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer and may use a third-party administrator to conduct background checks. Background checks are performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Institute for Social Research (ISR) job openings are posted for a minimum of fourteen (14) calendar days. Applications will be reviewed as received throughout the posting period and continue until the position is filled.

The University of Michigan is an equal employment opportunity employer.