Research Assistant (Domestic Social Policy)

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) Domestic Social Policy (DSP) Division seeks a Research Assistant to support research tasks across a broad range of domestic social policy issues and program areas. 

The Research Assistant (RA) provides research support tasks across a broad range of domestic policy and social program issues including: (1) Children and Families issues, especially as related to low-income populations; (2) Domestic Security and Immigration, including crime policy and border security; (3) Education and Labor, including training and the workforce; (4) Health Insurance and Financing, including Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and private health insurance; (5) Health Services, including, the health care workforce, and public health; and (6) Income Security, including Social Security, pensions, disability and unemployment.

The RA will join a team of RAs supporting objective, authoritative public policy analysis and consultation to congressional committees, Members and staff by assisting CRS analysts and specialists preparing objective, non-partisan analytical studies and descriptive reports on nationally significant public policy issues; assisting CRS analysts and specialists providing personal assistance to Members and staff on public policy issues throughout the legislative process; and participating in multi-disciplinary research projects and seminars.

Candidates should have knowledge of one or more DSP issues, familiarity with the research process, and knowledge of the research materials and tools used in social science research. Candidates must work effectively on a collaborative team and demonstrate the intellectual flexibility and broad research skills needed to address a wide range of domestic social policy issues. Illustrative programs of study include economics, demography, sociology and other social sciences and public policy. Candidates with computer programming and data analysis skills, as applied to social science or public policy research are encouraged to apply.

Research Assistant duties includes:

• Reviewing and evaluating professional journal articles, agency documents, and other analyses for authoritativeness, relevance, and currency. Preparing abstracts of these descriptive and/or analytical materials, summarizing their key findings, methodologies employed, and other relevant information.
• Participating in group efforts on research projects as a member of a collaborative team and undertaking research and data analytical tasks in support of the development of an array of analytical and descriptive products or components. Example tasks might include: tracking congressional hearings and bills in specific areas; culling, synthesizing, and tracking state policies; fact checking and other quality control; building and maintaining a database of program authorizations and appropriations; and, for active legislation, developing and managing a database of amendments and conference documents.
• Preparing materials for use at consultations, briefings, and seminars for congressional clients. Attending consultations, briefings, seminars, and outreach activities to gain familiarity with CRS’s information and analytic capabilities, recording questions, gauging audience engagement, and capturing audience suggestions for future sessions.
• Creating and populating databases and spreadsheets, reformatting data from different sources, and performing data input, calculations, and analysis. Training colleagues and instructing staff on the content, nature, and use of division data resources.
• Formatting a range of tables, graphs, images, and other insertions to CRS products, reviewing and verifying this content for accuracy and completeness. Updating statistics in CRS reports or other general distribution products. Recommending quality control procedures and enhancements to CRS products.
• Locating, extracting, collecting, and compiling quantitative data and other information; evaluating data for accuracy, relevance, authoritativeness, and usefulness; in some cases, cleaning and manipulating quantitative data using Excel or via programming using software such as Stata, SAS and R.

CRS works exclusively for the US Congress, providing policy and legal analysis to committees and Members of both the House and Senate, regardless of party affiliation. As a legislative branch agency within the Library of Congress, CRS is a valued and respected resource on Capitol Hill.

CRS is well known for analysis that is authoritative, confidential, objective and nonpartisan. Its highest priority is to ensure that Congress has immediate access to the nation's best thinking on public policy issues of interest to its Members and Committees.