Quantitative Pre-Doctoral Fellow - Military veterans preferred

Harvard University


Title: Quantitative Pre-Doctoral Fellow

School: Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Department_Area: Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics

Position Description: The Research & Design Studio, an initiative of the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, seeks a predoctoral fellow for a one-year appointment, with an expected start date during summer 2025. This fellowship provides an opportunity to work in close collaboration with the Center's researchers, scholars, and staff on new and ongoing projects related to civil discourse. This will include foundational studies on the challenges of productive dialogue, the assessment and evaluation of innovative pedagogical tools for fostering civil discourse on university campuses, and participation in stimulating interdisciplinary workshops.

Fellows will be based at Harvard University and will work closely with both research and pedagogy teams. Depending on the stage of the project, responsibilities may include coordinating the design and implementation of evaluation studies; contributing to research design; developing and administering surveys; managing and analyzing data; and reporting findings.

The Center seeks a quantitatively focused fellow to work closely with the Center's Chief Assessment Scientist on developing and implementing evaluation methods, including survey design, data management, and statistical analysis. They will also be responsible for data munging, wrangling, and cleaning to ensure data quality and consistency for analysis, and expected to contribute to quantitative research design, analyze complex data sets, and interpret findings to inform program development.

All fellows will also participate in weekly team meetings and have opportunities to engage broadly with the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics' vibrant community of scholars.

The annual salary is $60,000, plus benefits. Visa sponsorship can be arranged. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled. Priority will be given to applications received by June 1, 2025.

Please take a look at the work of the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics on its website: https://www.ethics.harvard.edu/

Candidates applying for this position may be asked to complete a short assessment to evaluate their data interpretation skills.

Basic Qualifications: The ideal candidate should be completing (or have completed) a bachelor's or master's degree and will have:

• a background in empirical quantitative research in the social sciences
• long-term interest in pursuing work related to civil discourse
• an excellent academic record
• strong organizational skills and attention to details
• an ability to work in a highly collaborative and multidisciplinary team

Additional Qualifications:

• Research experience in social psychology, political science, or related fields is desirable but not required
• Candidates with strong backgrounds in pedagogy or curriculum design who wish to develop research skills are also encouraged to apply
• Advanced experience with statistical analysis and data interpretation
• Familiarity with statistical software (e.g., Stata, SAS , R, Python)

Special Instructions: Please submit the following materials:

Cover Letter

• Describe your interest in the position
• Include your preferred start and end dates
• Highlight relevant research or work experience
• Detail your familiarity with statistical analysis software (e.g., Stata, SAS , R) or other relevant technical skills (if applying for the quantitative position)
• Share what skills you hope to develop through this fellowship

Current CV

• Include undergraduate and graduate degrees (completed or expected), institution, field of study, and GPA
• Provide names, email addresses, and phone numbers of 2-3 references, along with a brief (1-2 sentences) description of your relationship to each. Please inform your references that they may be contacted by someone from the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics.

An Original Research Paper or Writing Sample that Demonstrates Quantitative Research Skills (if available)

Contact Information: Yuuka McPherson, Fellowship Program Coordinator
Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics

Contact Email: ethics_fellowships@fas.harvard.edu

Equal Opportunity Employer: We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions or any other characteristic protected by law.

Minimum Number of References Required: 2

Maximum Number of References Allowed: 3

Keywords: Ethics, Quantitative, Civil Discourse, Dialogue

Supplemental Questions: Required fields are indicated with an asterisk (*).



Equal employment opportunity, including veterans and individuals with disabilities.

PI273423343