Job Posting Title:

Research Scientist (EdSHARe, Muller)

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Hiring Department:

Population Research Center

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Position Open To:

All Applicants

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Weekly Scheduled Hours:

40

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FLSA Status:

Exempt

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Earliest Start Date:

Oct 30, 2023

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Position Duration:

Expected to Continue

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Location:

UT MAIN CAMPUS

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Job Details:

General Notes

Seeking Research Scientist to join the Education Studies for Healthy Aging Research (EdSHARe) team. EdSHARe currently includes two large, nationally representative cohort studies: High School & Beyond (HSB; high school classes of 1980 and 1982) and The National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS72). Both are extraordinary data resources for studying the long-term consequences of education for later life health, cognition, and wellbeing. The EdSHARe team is led by Dr. Chandra Muller at UT and cross-site principal investigators at the University of Minnesota, University of Wisconsin, and Columbia University. The Research Scientist will be hosted by the UT Population Research Center and the UT Center for Aging and Population Studies.

This position is currently funded for one year from start date and may be renewed for additional years based upon work performance, availability of funding, and progress toward research goals. Earliest start date as soon as December 1st, 2023.
 

The Research Scientist will be expected to collaborate with the entire research team across the four collaborating institutions. The primary responsibility of the Research Scientist will be to collaborate with the Principal Investigators to produce research that directly addresses the main aims of the funded projects. Although the Research Scientist has no formal teaching requirements, they will be expected to provide occasional technical workshops and other guidance on data analysis and data management topics and to provide mentorship to junior team members. It will also be possible for the Research Scientist to develop their own research on related topics.

A successful applicant will have research experience in one or more of the following areas: education; cognition and cognitive aging; health and aging; work and occupations; neuropsychology; epidemiology; and disparities in these program areas.

What benefits do I receive with UT?  The university offers an impressive benefits package.

For more details on benefits, please see: https://hr.utexas.edu/prospective/benefits and https://hr.utexas.edu/current/services/my-total-rewards.

This position is eligible for a hybrid Flexible Work Arrangement (FWA) (on-campus and remote work). FWA arrangements are subject to manager approval and may shift due to changes in business needs.  The remote location must have a reliable internet connection to support working remotely. UT policies on Flexible Work Arrangements are available at https://hr.utexas.edu/current/fwa.

For more information about the College of Liberal Arts, please visit: https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/.  

Our college seeks to build a supportive, growth-minded community and cultivate outstanding and courageous leaders. For more information on the college staff leadership academy, please visit:

https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/resources-for-faculty-staff/staff-leadership-academy/.

For more information on college staff professional development, please visit:

https://wikis.utexas.edu/display/larc/Staff+Professional+Development+Fund.

Purpose

The Research Scientist will be responsible for conducting research related to the aims of the funded projects, in collaboration with the EdSHARe investigators. The Research Scientist should have skills, experience, and an interest in producing cutting-edge quantitative research on the relationship between education and cognitive aging using longitudinal surveys, biomarkers, and administrative data linkages.

Responsibilities

Collaboratively design and implement cutting-edge longitudinal data analysis investigating the effects of education and other early life exposures on cognitive functioning, health, and other outcomes in later life.

Work with project scientists to conduct administrative record linkages, prepare identifying records for fuzzy matching and evaluate the matched data, and construct and evaluate various indicators, such as the quality of spatially-located measures of life course exposures (e.g., county-level poverty rates, city-level measures of lead exposure, neighborhood-level segregation measures) that may impact cognitive functioning, health, and other outcomes in later life.

Design and implement (directly and by supervising others) database structures and data documentation and programming syntax for archiving and public dissemination.

Collaborate on project-related journal articles and other reports of research findings.

Mentor and facilitate research by students, early career scholars, and other project researchers; conduct trainings related to data management and analysis for project personnel and other users; organize and facilitate methodology-related project meetings.

Work with project personnel, project-affiliated organizations, and project vendors to maintain data security and facilitate user experience. Interact and coordinate with administrators responsible for user networks and groups.

Marginal/Incidental functions and other related functions, as assigned.

Required Qualifications

Ph.D. in Psychology, Sociology, Economics, Education, Epidemiology, Neuropsychology, Computer Science, or a related field.

Research accomplishments and professional experience equivalent to that of an established assistant professor or a new associate professor.

Established record as a mature, independent researcher.

Demonstrated expertise and experience in quantitative research using large population-representative datasets. This includes expertise and experience employing multiple types of modeling strategies (e.g., categorical data analysis, event history analysis, latent variable modeling, random effects models) and conducting analyses that employ strategies for dealing with missing data and complex sampling designs.

Demonstrated expertise and experience authoring journal article and/or reports

Experience in data management, documentation, and handling secure/restricted data.

Expertise using Stata.

At least five years of applicable experience.

Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.

Preferred Qualifications

Expertise in research on education and schools, cognition, aging, and/or health disparities.

At least five years of experience in empirical quantitative research using large population-representative datasets collected as part of longitudinal studies.

Experience working in an academic or similar research environment.

Experience working in highly interdisciplinary, cross-site, collaborative research projects.

Experience with computer system administration.

Familiarity with R and Linux

Salary Range

$80,000- $120,000

Working Conditions

Typical Office Environment

Required Materials

Resume/CV

3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor

Letter of interest

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded.  Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.

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Employment Eligibility:

Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.

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Retirement Plan Eligibility:

The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length. This position has the option to elect the Optional Retirement Program (ORP) instead of TRS, subject to the position being 40 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

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Background Checks:

A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.

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Equal Opportunity Employer:

The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.

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Pay Transparency:

The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information.

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Employment Eligibility Verification:

If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form.  You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States.  Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment.  Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.

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E-Verify:

The University of Texas at Austin use E-Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires effective May 2015. The university’s company ID number for purposes of E-Verify is 854197. For more information about E-Verify, please see the following:

E-Verify Poster (English) [PDF]E-Verify Poster (Spanish) [PDF]Right To Work Poster (English) [PDF]Right To Work Poster (Spanish) [PDF]

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Compliance:

Employees may be required to report violations of law under Title IX and the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). If this position is identified a Campus Security Authority (Clery Act), you will be notified and provided resources for reporting. Responsible employees under Title IX are defined and outlined in HOP-3031.

The Clery Act requires all prospective employees be notified of the availability of the Annual Security and Fire Safety report. You may access the most recent report here or obtain a copy at University Compliance Services, 1616 Guadalupe Street, UTA 2.206, Austin, Texas 78701.