Northeastern University

About the Opportunity

This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. It is not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified.

This is a 1-year fixed term position with the possibility of renewal based off of continuing external funding

JOB SUMMARY

The Global Resilience Institute (GRI) is an interdisciplinary institute committed to developing and deploying practical and innovative tools, applications, and skills that strengthen the resilience of individuals, communities, infrastructure, systems, networks, and societies. GRI is comprised of resilience experts from academia, government, and industry, empowering its ability to solve the world’s most pressing resilience challenges.

The Global Resilience Institute at Northeastern University is looking for a Sr. Research Associate to join their team. This position would play a critical research and communications role in several community engaged studies that seek to improve community resilience. The grant funded position is to begin June 1, 2025 and end on May 31, 2026.

Responsibilities include participating and working alongside principal investigators in activities for research funded community resilience projects in the U.S (and its territories) as well Caribbean Island nations. This position will lead with the principal investigator the writing of academic papers; research development opportunities, managing data collection and curation; helping supervise Undergrad or Graduate students. Additionally, the Sr. Research Associate will provide communication materials related to the projects at GRI that can be used for social media, website or print materials. The position will conduct interviews and analyze qualitative data related to these or collaborative sessions.

These research projects might include examples such as: a federally funded study of how a climate adaptation model could be applied to longer-term community resilience planning in mainland US cities as well as a landscape analysis of communities to increase adaptation and resilience in the US territories and the Caribbean. The Sr. Research Associate will also play a leading role in the development of proposals for new funding opportunities while working alongside the Sr. Research Scientist at GRI.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Must have a Masters; be able to undertake substantially full-time research; work under the supervision of a senior scientist. Relevant disciplines include political science; public policy; environmental science; communication; sociology; and economics, among others. Successful candidate(s) must have some (but need not have all) of the following:

• Must have strong qualitative methodology/analysis skills, particularly in analyzing interview data using thematic and qualitative content analysis;
• Interdisciplinary background, with background/experience in community engagement and community resilience planning;
• Must have strong writing skills (ability to create first drafts of manuscripts and other written material);
• Experience conducting interviews with the ability to conduct them independently;
• Computational skills to work with complex data;
• Experience in developing surveys and analyzing resulting data;
• Coordinate graduate or undergraduate research assistants on the project;
• Work with Founding Director and Sr. Research Scientist to publish results in high-quality, peer-reviewed journals
• Experience creating original content for website and social media related to funded projects
• Ability to travel and present research findings at conferences and seminars.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES & ACCOUNTABILITIES

1) Delivery of Research Funded Work (75%)

• Helping write up or lead use cases, supporting community engagement sessions with the other Sr. Researchers and the development of materials for a funders website and liaising with our funding collaborators, as well as assistance for webinar events.
• Synthesize and evaluate complex qualitative information and data;
• Write professional project reports which evaluate and summarize data and information, identify issues and causal characteristics, and present clear and compelling solutions devised as a result of the research team’s work
• Helping to scope research phases of projects and playing a lead supporting role working with Sr. Research Scientist and Founding Director in securing IRB approval of our protocols, conducting interviews, and play lead role in qualitative data analysis, attending several community engagement sessions (possibly in-person) in the U.S or Caribbean.
• Lead qualitative analyst on research funded projects position may be tied to.
• Lead Spanish (if applicable) or English interviews with stakeholders and then work on coding and analyzing (qualatative).
• Working with federal, state and local agencies and GRI experts to identify critical issues affecting resilient economic recovery in U.S. and Caribbean communities and identifying relevant stakeholders in order to convene calls, workshops, or working groups that enable the issues to be addressed holistically and rapidly or projects to potentially be funded.
• Providing Communications resilience expertise – either through direct engagement or facilitating engagement with GRI senior researchers – to recovery decision-makers; federal partners, community stakeholders, and tool developers.

2) Research Development (15%)

• Play a key role in the Project management of proposals for new funding opportunities at GRI
• Researching and mapping resilience research opportunities that align with GRI missions
• Play a lead role in the research, draft writing and teamwork effort and tasking that goes in to a research opportunity
• Look for grant funded opportunities that continue coverage of this position

3) Operational and Communication Support (10%)

• Providing research support, operational assistance, and engagement coordination, as needed, at the request of the respective federal agencies and principal investigator/ Co-investigators.
• Support GRI Communication efforts via website and social media content creation as well as content related to all public facing events/workshops that position is tied to.

Position Type

Research

Additional Information

Northeastern University considers factors such as candidate work experience, education and skills when extending an offer.

Northeastern has a comprehensive benefits package for benefit eligible employees. This includes medical, vision, dental, paid time off, tuition assistance, wellness & life, retirement- as well as commuting & transportation. Visit https://hr.northeastern.edu/benefits/ for more information.

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Compensation Grade/Pay Type:

107S

Expected Hiring Range:

$52,820.00 - $74,607.50

With the pay range(s) shown above, the starting salary will depend on several factors, which may include your education, experience, location, knowledge and expertise, and skills as well as a pay comparison to similarly-situated employees already in the role. Salary ranges are reviewed regularly and are subject to change.