Social Science Research Professional 1 (On-Site)

Social Science Research Professional 1 (On-Site)

The School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S) is the foundation of a liberal arts education at Stanford. The school encompasses 23 departments and 25 interdisciplinary programs. H&S is home to fundamental and applied research, where free, open, and critical inquiry is pursued across disciplines. As the university’s largest school, H&S serves as the foundation of a Stanford undergraduate education no matter which discipline students pursue as a major. Graduate students work alongside world-renowned faculty to pursue and shape foundational research that leads to breakthroughs and discoveries that shed new light on the past, influence the present, and shape the future. Together, faculty and students in H&S engage in inspirational teaching, learning, and research every day.

Program Description: The Martin Luther King, Jr., Papers Project publishes The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., the definitive edition of King’s most historically significant speeches, sermons, correspondence, and unpublished manuscripts.

Position Summary: The Project seeks a full-time research assistant to support and facilitate the publication of the documentary editions of the King Papers by: (1) conducting research necessary to prepare document annotations, a chronology of King’s activities, and the introductory essay for the manuscript of each volume, including but not limited to biographical, organizational, and microfilm-based research; (2) verification of accuracy of document transcriptions; (3) editing and proofreading the manuscript; (4) sorting incoming documents according to historical significance and priority for cataloguing; (5) acquiring documents for possible publication; (6) obtaining copyright permission agreements to publish documents and photographs in the volumes of King’s papers; (7) assisting in the compilation of the calendar of documents; (8) working with editors to ensure accuracy of web-based materials.  The position also includes working with the other research assistants to recruit, train, and coordinate student researchers; to help plan and implement the summer internship program; to assist in verification of data entry in the web-accessible database of King-authored and other historically relevant documents; process audio/visual materials for Project’s web-accessible database, including digitizing of audio/visual and print material for web access; to participate in planning Project events such as the annual King Holiday commemoration; and to carry out public relations tasks, including responding to outside research requests. 

The Social Science Research Professional 1 will work under general supervision of the Director of the King Papers Project and must possess and demonstrate a positive outlook on continuous process improvement efforts while maintaining a team-based and customer-focused mindset. It is critical that this position exhibit the abilities to practice sound judgment and decision-making, effective written & oral communication, strong attention to detail and respectful relationship management. This position must also exhibit a strong desire to continuously learn new and unfamiliar business topics, policies and procedures as they relate to Social Science Research – the ability to translate this information into operational successes will be critical.

This is a 100% FTE, two-year fixed term, non-exempt position. This position will be based on the Stanford campus.

If you believe that this opportunity is a match for your knowledge, skills and abilities, we encourage you to apply. Thank you for considering employment opportunities with the School of Humanities and Sciences.

CORE DUTIES:

·         Plan and perform research tasks of limited complexity requiring initiative and judgment in applying basic knowledge and understanding of scientific theory when precedents do not provide specific guidance; general instruction is provided by the supervisor.

·         Extract data and structured information from published literature and other sources.

·         Assist in designing and evaluating phases of research projects, seeking guidance where necessary, and auditing the accuracy and validity of data entered in databases.

·         Conduct literature searches, and write literature summaries, requiring preliminary judgments after conceptual approach is outlined by the supervisor. Build and organize data as requested by principal investigator or faculty; use common statistical programs, requiring the application of job control language in generating and organizing data.

·         Help orient and train new staff or students as needed.

·         Assist with development and design of outreach materials and tools for recruitment, educational, or awareness programs with guidance from supervisor.

·         Adapt new, nonstandard methods outlined by supervisor (principal investigator or faculty).

·         Present research finding to internal audiences, including peers, co-workers, and managers.

·         Administer questionnaires and rating scales requiring judgment in applying non-routine scoring procedures.

* Other duties may also be assigned.