Research Intern - Budget and Entitlement Policy

To be considered for this role, you must apply directly through our online application. 

About the Role

This paid, in-person internship in Washington, DC (25-40 hours per week over 12 weeks) joins Cato’s Budget & Entitlement team, working closely with Romina Boccia (Director of Budget and Entitlement Policy) and Dominik Lett (Policy Analyst). You’ll support research on the federal budget, tax policy, and major entitlements—Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid—turning agency data into clear analysis for op-eds, blog posts, and policy studies (including recent work on Social Security reform and emergency spending).

Day to day, you will pull and reconcile series from CBO, OMB Historical Tables, Treasury, SSA, CMS, BEA/BLS/FRED; track federal and state proposals; produce reproducible charts and tables; and draft concise background notes.

The work emphasizes rigor, accuracy, and clear communication in the service of individual liberty, limited government, free markets, and peace.

Responsibilities

• Regular fact-finding missions to assist scholars’ op-eds, studies, and blog posts.
• Monitor pending state and federal legislation.
• Data collection for comparative policy studies across states and countries.
• Conduct literature reviews of issues relevant to scholars.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated interest in—and working familiarity with—US budget and entitlement policy (e.g., Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid; taxes and spending), aligned with Cato’s principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets, and peace.
• Strong background in economics or public finance; able to clearly explain incentives and trade-offs to policy audiences.
• Experience writing about public policy with precise claims and accurate citations from primary sources (e.g., CBO, OMB, SSA, CMS).
• Microsoft Excel proficiency (filters/sort, XLOOKUP or INDEX-MATCH, PivotTables) and organized, labeled workbooks; experience with R, Python, Stata, or SQL is a plus.
• Government data literacy across CBO, OMB, Treasury, SSA, CMS, BEA/BLS/FRED—including correct units/deflators, fiscal vs. calendar year, and per-capita adjustments.
• Professionalism and reliability—can plan effectively, meet deadlines, provide proactive updates, and clearly summarize legislative proposals.

Finalists for this role may be asked to complete a technical interview for proficiency with Microsoft Excel.