Senior Data Scientist

ABOUT US

Do you have a passion for higher education? Do you want to make a positive impact on the college admissions process? Our staff help to remove barriers and encourage students to forge their path to a better future. Common App is a national not-for-profit organization dedicated to the pursuit of access, equity, and integrity in the college admission process. Each year we support more than 1 million students, one-third of whom are first-generation, as they apply to our more than 900 diverse member colleges & universities using the Common App's free online application.

If you are an experienced Senior Data Scientist professional and want to be part of a mission-driven non-profit that uses innovative technology to advance the college admission process, Common App may be a great match for you. Common App is currently searching for a Senior Data Scientist.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The Senior Data Scientist position is charged with helping to build the organization’s evolving research and analytic function. Reporting to the Director of Data Science, Analytics and Research, the individual will be engaged with all aspects of the research function, including the production of externally facing research products, management of external research partnerships, and applied research in support of data-informed Common App initiatives. The Senior Data Scientist will apply advanced training and experience in data science, research methodology, and data visualization to execute the research agenda and deploy products that support Common App’s commitment to access and equity across the organization’s functional areas. They will also collaborate closely with our Communications and Leadership teams to maximize the impact of our public- and constituent-facing research products, supporting strategic engagement with other thought leaders, media, and other constituents.

Requirements

QUALIFICATIONS

This role requires:

• Candidates must live in the United States.
• Bachelor’s degree in a quantitative social sciences discipline (e.g., Public Policy, Economics, Education Policy, Education Measurement, Psychometrics, Computational Psychology, etc.) or related quantitative field (e.g., Data Science, Statistics)
• At least 4 - 6 years related experience with at least 2 years of experience working among the following functional domains: descriptive or causal quantitative social science research, data reporting and analytics, data visualization, data mining, and/or data quality inspection/cleaning.
• Fluent data manipulation and coding with SQL and/or R.
• Experience working with and validating imperfect data.
• Experience managing analyses for large-scale, interconnected datasets (e.g., memory management, parallel computing, complex join logic, etc.)
• Experience with descriptive and inferential statistics.
• Experience with data visualization (Tableau, R preferred).
• Experience working with National Center for Education Statistics, Census, College Scorecard, National Student Clearinghouse, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, and other publicly available datasets relevant to education.
• Understanding of the strategic context of Common Application’s role in the higher education industry.
• Substantial project work and experience in successfully translating insights from large-scale data sources into business action or product services.
• Strong interpersonal skills and service orientation.
• Proven ability for communicating data and research findings to non-technical audiences.
• Ability to work effectively in a collaborative and diverse environment.
• Proficiency or experience with at least one of the following domain areas: natural language processing methodologies (especially large language models), predictive analytics and modeling, surveying methodology and analysis, data-driven recommendation systems, and/or clustering analysis (e.g., latent profile analysis, latent class analysis, etc.).

The ideal candidate will possess:

• Advanced degree in a quantitative social sciences discipline (e.g., Public Policy, Economics, Education Policy, Education Measurement, Psychometrics, Computational Psychology, etc.) or related quantitative field (e.g., Data Science, Statistics)
• At least 4 - 6 years related experience with at least 3 years of experience working among the following functional domains: descriptive or causal quantitative social science research, data reporting and analytics, data visualization, data mining, and/or data quality inspection/cleaning.
• Experience with AWS cloud computing services (e.g., Sagemaker, S3, Athena, Redshift).
• Passion for, and experience in, higher education.
• Experience working with Agile frameworks for cross-functional, product-minded collaboration.

Benefits

Common App is a virtual first environment. We value our employees’ time and efforts. Our commitment to your success is enhanced by our competitive salary and an extensive benefits package including:

• Paid time off
  • Vacation Leave (starting at 10 days per year)
  • Sick Leave (15 days per year)
  • Paid Holidays (New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, July 4th, Labor Day, and Thanksgiving Day)
  • Floating Holidays (9 days to be used at employee’s discretion)
• Healthcare
  • Medical (2 plan options with Cigna including an option for 100% employee coverage)
  • Health Savings Account (HSA) with annual employer contribution starting at $1,500 or Flexible Spending Account (FSA), depending on plan election
  • Dental (plan with MetLife offering 100% employee coverage)
  • Vision benefits (plan with Cigna offering 100% employee coverage)
  • Short + Long Term Disability (100% employer paid)
  • Life + AD&D (100% employer paid)
  • Additional Voluntary Life + AD&D insurance available
  • Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Added compensation
  • 403(b) Retirement Plan with 5% employer contribution + additional 5% employer match
  • Stipends (virtual office set up and monthly remote work support)
• Future growth opportunities within the organization

We work to maintain the best possible environment for our staff, where people can learn and grow. We strive to provide a diverse, collaborative, team-oriented, creative environment where each person feels encouraged to contribute to our processes, decisions, planning, and culture.

HOW DO I APPLY

To apply for this opportunity, send your resume and cover letter with salary expectations.

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