Research Associate
The Cato Institute seeks an innovative Research Associate for a full-time position in Washington, DC to help our scholars produce first-rate public policy scholarship in poverty and social welfare policy. In this role, your primary responsibilities would include producing policy analyses, briefing papers, testimony, op-eds, and online content.
As a successful Research Associate, you’re an entrepreneurial and hard-working self-starter with a willingness to adapt to the changing needs of a growing policy center. You also have demonstrably strong research skills, knowledge of the US welfare system, and a commitment to limited government and individual liberty.
This role is available through our two-year Research Associate program, where you’ll have the opportunity to learn from senior staff and featured guest lecturers across academia and the business community. With ample opportunities to attend these educational sessions, network with peers and scholars, and gain mentorship from some of the nation’s foremost public policy scholars, you’ll be well prepared to excel as a leader in policy, academia, government, business, and beyond.
Company Overview
The Cato Institute is a public policy research organization—a think tank—dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets, and peace. Its scholars and analysts conduct independent, nonpartisan research on a wide range of policy issues. Founded in 1977, Cato owes its name to Cato’s Letters, a series of essays published in 18th-century England that presented a vision of a society free from excessive government power. Those essays inspired the architects of the American Revolution. And the simple, timeless principles of that revolution — individual liberty, limited government, and free markets – turn out to be even more powerful in today’s world of global markets and unprecedented access to information than Jefferson or Madison could have imagined. Social and economic freedom is not just the best policy for a free people, it is the indispensable framework for the future.
The Cato Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Responsibilities
- Assist scholars with their tasks, projects, and events
- Conduct general or detailed research as required
- Conduct literature reviews
- Edit and fact check manuscripts
- Supervise the work of interns
- Minor administrative duties
Requirements
- Demonstrated ability to write well-structured, readable prose is essential
- Prior research in domestic policy
- Bachelor’s degree in economics, political science, or public policy (or equivalent work experience in these fields)
- An interest in social welfare policy
- Expertise with Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
- Bonus skills include the ability to conduct regression analyses, knowledge of state and local government, and/or a Master’s degree in a public policy related field
Please submit your resume and cover letter through our online application process. Click here to apply.