The Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC) – UConn School of Social Work Partnership is looking for a graduate research assistant to join our team! Please share widely with incoming or current graduate students who may be interested in this opportunity.
The OEC is a state agency that focuses on children from birth into grade school, overseeing a network of programs and services that help young children and families thrive. A key part of this work is supporting the providers, teachers, and other professionals who’ve dedicated their careers to caring for and educating children. To learn more about the OEC, visit their website: https://www.ctoec.org/about-oec/
The OEC – UConn School of Social Work Partnership evaluates and supports outcomes-based programming for the state agency. Our team works in close partnership with staff at the OEC to conduct research and evaluation activities, including needs assessments, child care cost and market rate analyses, continuous quality improvement trainings, technical support, and cross agency data sharing. We also translate findings for a range of stakeholders including state legislators, families, and early child care professionals.
Our team is looking for a graduate research assistant to work 20 hours per week on our primarily remote team (start date flexible, July 1, 2024 preferred), with the possibility of renewing over the course of our two year contract, including summers, contingent upon performance.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Strong interest in, coursework in, and/or experience related to the field of early childhood/early childhood education research is a must.
- Ability to work cooperatively with others in a professional, ethical, respectful, and courteous manner with a disbursed team.
- Experience with data management and cleaning processes.
- Strong critical thinking skills to evaluate the validity and reliability of research findings, identify potential biases, and draw appropriate conclusions.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Proficiency in conducting and interpreting basic descriptive and inferential statistics utilizing tools such as Excel, SPSS, or equivalent software.
- Familiarity with qualitative research methods, including coding and thematic analysis of interview transcripts, focus group discussions, or other qualitative data sources.
- Training in research methods, including ethical considerations in research (e.g., informed consent procedures, confidentiality protection, Institutional Review Board (IRB) regulations) and research design (e.g., selecting appropriate methodologies, sampling techniques, data collection methods).
- Data visualization skills using software such as Tableau.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
If interested in this opportunity, please send your CV/resume and a brief statement describing your relevant skills/experiences, especially those related to early childhood, to Dr. Samantha Lawrence at Samantha.Lawrence@uconn.edu.
For more information, contact: Dr. Samantha Lawrence at Samantha.Lawrence@uconn.edu