Education Policy and Applied Research Analyst

LSAC's mission is to advance law and justice by promoting access, equity, and fairness in law school admission and supporting the learning journey from prelaw through practice.

Pay rate: $78,000-90,000, depending on experience

The LSAC education policy and applied research analyst is a key contributor to advancing LSAC's mission by maintaining our commitment to rigorous, collaborative, practitioner-informed, and equity-minded research. The education policy and applied research analyst will support the practical use and impact of LSAC's research and data insights. The scope of the work includes analyzing and writing about research and data related to the existing educational systems, processes, and policies along the prelaw to practice pathway. Using LSAC research and data, the education policy and research analyst will craft research-based recommendations and contribute to the development of new practices and programs. The education policy and applied research analyst reports to LSAC's senior director of research and has no supervisory responsibilities.

Essential Job Functions

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position. The individual employed in this position will be required to:

Document and communicate research findings through published essays, reports, and presentations to stakeholders in legal education and the legal profession, including regulators, educators, law schools, prelaw advisors, pathway programs, and others.
• Research existing legal education and higher education policies and analyze how those policies positively and negatively affect the prelaw to practice pathway.
• Monitor current events, political and economic developments, and social trends that may have an impact on legal and higher education policies.
• Compile the annual report of LSAC's research and data insights.
• Use an equity-minded framework and approach to write applied policy and research reports based on research and data produced by LSAC's research team.
• Follow LSAC procedures, processes, and protocols to conduct rigorous research.
• Readily identify potential for bias and actively work to minimize inequities in research and applied settings, including research projects, tools, products, and services.
• Support and collaborate closely with the senior director of research and the Research team.
• Collaborate with other internal stakeholders to ensure clear and easily accessible summaries of research and data, including useable and understandable data visualization.
• Keep up to date on the latest research and literature in education, pipeline/pathway programs, admissions, legal education, student learning outcomes, student development, measurement tools, assessments, the legal profession, equity, advance quantitative methodology, and other relevant fields.
• Contribute to the Research team strategic plan, goals, and research agenda.
• Conduct basic data analysis, both quantitative and qualitative.

Competencies

• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Holds a strong sense of accountability for both individual and team objectives.
• Embraces a forward-thinking mindset, contributing to a culture of continuous improvement and creativity.
• Excellent time management, prioritization, attention to detail and organization skills.
• Excellent data management skills.
• Must be equity-minded, recognizing the role of social structures, systems, and environments in producing educational and workplace disparities by race, gender, socioeconomic status, and other identities.
• Excellent policy writing skills in the field of education.
• Ability to work effectively both independently and within a collaborative, interdisciplinary team environment.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines.
• Must exercise confidentiality and maintain security of confidential materials.
• Exercises appropriate research judgment independent of direct supervision.
• Must be highly self-motivated, resourceful, and flexible.
• Highly autonomous and able to problem solve and deal with ambiguity and tension.
• Demonstrate willingness to explore new and creative approaches to conveying research findings as it applies to legal education and addressing systemic inequity in the legal system.
• Demonstrates willingness to learn and to adapt to new challenges.

Education and Experience

Required

• 3 years of experience in interpreting and writing quantitative and mixed-methods research findings for lay audiences.
• 3 years of experience in policy work, with a strong preference for experience in education policy or equivalent experience/training.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, including ability to write for and speak to academic and lay audiences.
• Experience using Power BI, Qualtrics, STATA, and Excel for data management, data visualization, and data analyses.
• Prior experience collaborating on a team and concurrently working on multiple projects.
• Direct experience in equitable evaluation and/or culturally responsive approaches to using evidence.
• Experience in mixed-methods research projects, using both quantitative and qualitative methods.
• Experience using Power BI, Qualtrics, STATA or SAS, SQL, and Python for data management, data visualization, and basic analyses.
  
  

Preferred

• MA in a social science field such as higher education, education policy, or something similar strongly preferred. We will consider candidates without an advanced degree who demonstrate substantial relevant experience.
• Three or more years of experience working in social science, applied research, or education policy in an academic or professional setting.
• Experience using Cosmos DB, R, SPSS, and Tableau for data management, data visualization, and complex analyses.
• Excellent public speaking ability.
• Strong knowledge of quantitative research design and methodology and statistical analysis (e.g., test statistics, power analysis, effect sizes, multivariate analysis, multilevel models).

Additional Information

Supervisory Responsibilities

This role does not have people management responsibilities.

Position Type

The LSAC standard business hours are Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:45 p.m. ET. While these are the standard office hours for LSAC, as an exempt employee, the employee will be expected to work the hours necessary to satisfactorily complete their assignments in a responsible and professional manner.

Work Environment

This job operates in a remote and professional office environment. Whether remote or in-office, this role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines.

Travel Requirements

Occasional travel is required for this position. Necessity will be determined by the employee and their direct supervisor.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee must regularly write, read and communicate effectively.

Additional Information:

Please note that this job description may not contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Job responsibilities may change at any time with or without notice.

Except as otherwise provided by law, all terms of employment are subject on an at-will basis and can change at any time.