Career Opportunities
Thank you for your interest in career opportunities with the University of Chicago Urban Labs! Urban Labs has a strong commitment to using science in service of cities to improve the quality of urban life. We regularly seek out passionate, data-oriented, public service minded individuals to join our team.
For more information on Urban Labs' career opportunities, culture and recruiting process, please see the frequently asked question section below.
Current Opportunities
Crime & Education Labs
- Job Title: Embedded Analyst - CPS
- Desired Start Date: TBC
- Requisition Number: JR10667
The UChicago Education Lab is seeking an Embedded Analyst with strong technical and communication skills to work in close partnership with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). The embedded analyst will provide technical assistance to the CPS at the direction of the UChicago Education Lab Senior Research Director and senior officials within the district in order to advance mutual priorities focused on equitable service provision to the district’s most vulnerable students.
The Analyst will be embedded at the Chicago Public Schools Headquarters in the Loop approximately 80% of the week and at the UChicago Crime Lab and Education Lab Loop office approximately 20% of the week.
This position requires an individual who is able to work as a part of small research and practitioner teams running multiple projects concurrently. The position offers the opportunity to work directly with leading social policy researchers at the University of Chicago and senior leadership at CPS, as well as an experienced team of data scientists, administrative staff, and project managers from the Chicago office.
- Job Title: Data Scientist
- Desired Start Date: TBC
- Requisition Number: JR10663
The University of Chicago Crime Lab and Education Lab are seeking a data scientist to work on our portfolio of projects applying machine learning to public policy, particularly in the area of improving policing and police-community relations. We’re seeking a smart, motivated, and detail-oriented person to work on all parts of our applied machine learning projects – all the way from cleaning and structuring raw data to developing predictive models and evaluating them in a randomized control trial. An ideal candidate will have experience extracting insights from data and communicating them to both technical and non-technical audiences.
The position offers the opportunity to work directly with leading researchers at the University of Chicago and policymakers on projects with immediate real-world impact. You will collaborate closely with PhD-level computer science and economics researchers, as well as top-notch research managers and Crime Lab leadership. This position is particularly well-suited for candidates who may be interested in pursuing a PhD in the future or for data scientists who want to transition from industry to public policy research.
- Job Title: Project Associate
- Desired Start Date: TBC
- Requisition Number: JR10666
The University of Chicago Crime Lab and Education Lab are seeking a Project Associate with strong technical skills to work on large-scale social policy research projects designed to reduce crime and improve educational outcomes. The analyst will work on a portfolio of projects across a variety of areas that span both criminal justice and education.
This position requires an individual who is able to work as a part of small research teams running multiple projects concurrently. The position offers the opportunity to work directly with leading social policy researchers at the University of Chicago and government agency staff, as well as an experienced team of data scientists, administrative staff, and project managers from the Chicago office.
- Job Title: Research Analyst
- Desired Start Date: TBC
- Requisition Number: JR10662
The UChicago Crime Lab and Education Lab are seeking Research Analysts with strong technical skills to work on large-scale social policy research projects designed to reduce crime and improve educational outcomes. The analyst will work on a portfolio of projects across a variety of areas that span both criminal justice and education.
The successful candidate will have experience in applying a variety of statistical modeling and data analysis techniques to datasets in real-world settings. From project inception to delivery, the Research Analyst will contribute to all facets of data collection and cleaning, model development, and implementation. This position requires an individual who is able to work as a part of small research teams running multiple projects concurrently. The position offers the opportunity to work directly with leading social policy researchers at the University of Chicago and NYC-area universities, local city agency staff, as well as a team of administrative staff, other analysts, research managers, and student research assistants.
Energy & Environment Lab
- Job Title: Summer Research Assistant
- Desired Start Date: TBC
The University of Chicago Energy & Environment Lab is seeking Summer Research Assistants (RAs) with strong research, methodological, and programming skills to support large-scale environmental policy research projects. The RAs will work on a portfolio of projects designed to evaluate the impact of promising energy and environmental interventions. Typical research projects involve the analysis of environmental and energy data, utilizing quasi-experimental and experimental methods to provide government partners with guidance on key policy questions.
Inclusive Economy Lab
- Job Title: Portfolio Manager, STLS
- Desired Start Date: 04.16.2021
- Requisition Number: JR10532
The UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab is seeking a Portfolio Manager to manage large-scale social policy experiments designed to understand how to better support students experiencing housing instability in achieving their unique educational and personal goals. This individual will work on a portfolio of projects conducted in close partnership with city agencies and non-profits, leading social policy researchers at the University of Chicago, families and students with lived experience, as well as a team of administrative staff, other project managers, research analysts, and student research assistants. The Portfolio Manager will help implement a research agenda to increase the limited evidence base of how to support students experiencing homelessness stay engaged in school despite the additional barriers they face.
- Job Title: Portfolio Manager, Homelessness Prevention
- Desired Start Date: 04.16.2021
- Requisition Number: JR10533
The UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab is seeking a Portfolio Manager to manage large-scale social policy experiments designed to test the effectiveness of poverty interventions. This individual will work on a portfolio of projects focused on homelessness prevention projects. The position offers the opportunity to work directly with leading social policy researchers at the University of Chicago, as well as a team of administrative staff, other project managers, research analysts, and student research assistants. The Portfolio Manager will also collaborate closely with the UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab’s partners in the public and nonprofit sectors.
- Job Title: Research Director
- Desired Start Date: 02.02.2021
- Requisition Number: JR09839
The University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab is seeking a full-time Research Director to provide scientific and intellectual leadership for the Inclusive Economy Lab. The Research Director, in partnership with senior faculty members at the University of Chicago and elsewhere, will provide scientific direction for a portfolio of applied research projects and ensure the rigor and quality of the Lab's work.
FAQs
For our three most common research roles--Project Associate, Research Manager, and Research Analyst--please refer to the responsibilities outlined below:
- Project Associates support large-scale social policy research projects designed to test the effectiveness of promising interventions by supporting a Research Manager or Research Analyst.
- Research Managers work directly with leading social science researchers, local policymakers, frontline practitioners, and a dedicated team of research analysts, data scientists, and administrative staff to implement ambitious field experiments.
- Research Analysts apply a variety of statistical modeling and data techniques to datasets in real-world settings, and contribute to all facets of data collection & cleaning, model development, analysis, and interpretation of results.
Urban Labs also hires for other positions in research, IT, and operations. We encourage you to view opportunities below.
You may be asked to submit multiple documents, including a Cover Letter, Writing Sample, and Unofficial Transcripts from the highest degree program received. Please see the job description for the exact documents required for that job. All materials should be submitted to the Workday system. Refer to the job requisition number on the job description to apply to the correct position.
All of our positions require a cover letter. In the cover letter, we encourage you to elaborate on your relevant achievements and describe your interest in the position.
We appreciate your interest in Urban Labs and look forward to reviewing your application. Due to the high-volume of applications that we receive, although we try, we may not be able to respond to all individual inquires.
Urban Labs employees are committed to creating a collaborative, high energy office that is open and welcoming to individuals of all backgrounds and life experiences, and prioritize developing a workforce that is as diverse as the city in which we work.
While we are affiliated with the University of Chicago, we are not located in Hyde Park. We have an office in downtown Chicago, which allows us to work more closely with our public sector partners.
In addition, Urban Labs also has an office in New York City that focuses on Crime and Education work. The New York Office works in close collaboration with the Crime and Education Labs in Chicago.
Urban Labs is a set of highly collaborative Labs and as such, we all work together towards a common mission of science in service of cities.
If you have questions about the Workday Application System, click here.
If you have specific questions that were not answered in our above frequently asked questions section, please contact us at urbanlabs@uchicago.edu Thanks!
