Senior Researcher, Youth Development

American Institutes for Research

Senior Researcher leading research on youth development and economic mobility at AIR. Collaborating with teams, managing projects, and communicating findings effectively.

Posted 5/15/2026full-timeRemote • California, Illinois, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia • 🇺🇸 United StatesSenior💰 $126,000 - $154,000 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Manage day-to-day project operations in roles such as principal investigator, project director, or task lead.
Lead collaborative project teams by developing timelines, coordinating staff assignments, and ensuring deliverables are completed on time, within budget, and to a high standard.
Identify research problems and design studies to address key questions in applied research contexts.
Apply subject-matter expertise to design and implement relevant, responsive, and impactful research projects.
Develop study designs with aligned research questions, methodologies, and analytic plans.
Lead and contribute to research proposals for federal, state, foundation, and other clients.
Devise and implement innovative solutions to practical challenges in applied research.
Lead data collection and analysis efforts.
Oversee the design and planning of qualitative and/or quantitative data collection tools, such as interview protocols, focus group guides, and surveys.
Supervise field-based data collection activities, including interviews, observations, focus groups, and document reviews.
Conduct or oversee data analysis using appropriate tools and techniques for various data types.
Communicate study progress and findings clearly and effectively.
Prepare reports, briefs, visualizations, and other materials that interpret and present research findings for clients and stakeholders.
Represent the organization professionally in all client interactions.
Communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, with clients, partners, and stakeholders.
Foster and maintain positive, collaborative working relationships.
Manage client and stakeholder relationships with professionalism and awareness of the broader policy and practice landscape.
Contribute thoughtfully and creatively to project teams.

Requirements

What you’ll need

PhD in related subject area (e.g., Sociology, Psychology, Anthropology, Public Policy, or related field) with 3+ years of relevant experience or Master’s degree with 7+ years of relevant experience.
Demonstrated expertise in youth development, particularly in out‑of‑school‑time (OST) contexts such as summer learning, expanded learning, youth sports, informal learning environments, or youth workforce development programs.
Experience conducting research or evaluation in contract research settings, including familiarity with client‑funded timelines, deliverables, and compliance requirements.
Proven ability to serve as a Project Director (PD) or equivalent role, including managing budgets, timelines, staff, and client relationships.
Strong grounding in implementation science and its application to youth‑focused programs and systems.
Experience with data collection methodologies (including but not limited to structured interviews, observations, survey research) and analysis activities (including but not limited to experience with quantitative and/or qualitative analytic software packages [such as STATA, R, EXCEL, NViVO, and Access]).
Experience building and maintaining client and partner relationships and collaborating with youth‑serving organizations, community‑based partners, or education agencies.
Experience with business pursuit (e.g., grant and proposal writing).

Benefits

Comp & perks

AIR’s Total Rewards Program
Competitive salary

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

project managementresearch designdata collectiondata analysisqualitative researchquantitative researchimplementation sciencegrant writingproposal writingbudget management

Soft Skills

leadershipcommunicationcollaborationrelationship managementproblem-solvingcreativityprofessionalismorganizational skillsinterpersonal skillsteamwork

Certifications

PhDMaster's degree