Overview

The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) seeks two full-time, in-person research assistants to support AEI’s education policy studies team, which promotes policy solutions to K–12 and higher education problems. Qualified candidates should submit a resume, cover letter demonstrating their interest in AEI’s mission and education policy research, academic transcript, and 500-word writing sample on any topic.

Skills

The incoming research assistant will be dedicated to AEI’s Conservative Education Reform Network (CERN). Candidates interested in this opportunity should have a demonstrated interest in conservative education policy and excellent communication and interpersonal skills. In addition to research assistant duties, this person would:

Coordinate and oversee CERN-specific events and programming.
Maintain CERN’s website and public directory.
Meet with AEI’s development and government relations teams to further CERN’s efforts, as necessary.
Coordinate the production of CERN book projects, including the Sketching a New Conservative Education Agenda booklet.
Oversee publication of the monthly CERN newsletter and all external email communication.
Engage with CERN’s membership and manage outreach of the network

Responsibilities

Research and Writi ng
- Conduct research and writing for research and policy papers, studies, and reports about education policy.
- Perform library, online, bibliographic, and investigative research under the guidance of more experienced researchers.
- Coordinate small-scale and major long-term research projects.
- Participate in all stages of scholars’ writing projects, including writing first drafts of op-eds and reports, making revisions based on scholar feedback, and offering substantive edits and copy edits of drafts before publication.
Administrative Support
- Coordinate the program’s public event series and private meetings.
- Manage the program’s contacts database.
- Coordinate with AEI’s media team to pitch articles and schedule TV, radio, and podcast appearances.
- Post education content on the AEI website.
- Manage a daily calendar and arrange all travel for an assigned scholar.

Physical Requirements And Working Conditions At AEI

The employee is regularly expected to stand, sit, talk, hear, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer, telephone, and keyboard. This job requires close vision abilities due to computer work.
The employee must be able to lift up to 30 pounds at times.
The employee must be able to work in a confined area.
Moderate noise (e.g., from computers, phone, printers, and light traffic) is expected.
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential responsibilities associated with this position.

Qualifications

A bachelor’s degree at the start date is required.
0–2 years of previous full-time work experience—previous internship experience strongly preferred
Candidates should have:
- Excellent organizational skills,
- Attention to detail and a high level of initiative,
- Proficiency in performing administrative and logistical coordination tasks,
- Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work well with a variety of people in high-stress environments,
- The ability to juggle many tasks at once and adapt easily to shifting priorities,
- Strong oral and written communication skills, and
- A demonstrated interest in education policy.

Benefits

AEI offers generous benefits, including 18 days of paid leave (15 days of paid annual leave and 3 personal floating holidays), 12 days of paid sick leave, paid family leave, medical and dental coverage, a health savings account, medical and dependent care flexible spending accounts, a tuition assistance program of up to $5,200, life and disability insurance at no cost to employees, and a 403(b) retirement plan with a 12 percent contribution from AEI, among others. For more information, you can see a full summary of our benefits here .

Compensation is based on a number of factors, including the position’s scope and responsibilities, a candidate’s applicable full-time work experience, a candidate’s key skills and qualifications, and internal and external market considerations. The salary range for this full-time, exempt position is $50,000–$54,000. The salary is just one component of AEI’s total compensation package for employees.

American Enterprise Institute jobs

Research Assistant, Education Policy Studies