Back to jobs
New

Principal Researcher, Healthcare Survey Methodology

US-Remote

AIR is seeking a Principal Researcher specializing in survey methodology to join our Healthcare Transformation team. The Principal Researcher would lead and contribute to the design, collection, and analysis of survey data used in health program evaluations and other projects. Activities include survey design, the development of questionnaires and test items, processing and cleaning data, analysis of data, creating research data files and data documentation, and producing statistical reports.  

AIR’s Healthcare Transformation team partners with Medicare, Medicaid, foundations, and private organizations to advance evidence-based policies that improve healthcare quality, patient experience, and affordability. The team blends policy expertise with advanced analytics and technology to address real-world implementation challenges and drive innovative, high-impact solutions.

This position has the flexibility to work remotely within the United States (U.S.) or from one of AIR’s U.S. office locations. This does not include U.S. territories. 

About AIR:

Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance to address some of the most pressing challenges in the United States and globally. We generate evidence and apply data-driven solutions that expand opportunities and improve lives for all.

Responsibilities:

This position will work on teams that conduct work on all aspects of survey methods and operations, quality management, and data analysis. Responsibilities will include:

  • Support the development and execution of theoretically sound, practical approaches to achieve the statistical objectives of a study or project, including:

    • Developing and evaluating sampling frames
    • Selecting samples based on complex designs
    • Constructing weights for studies with complex designs
    • Assessing the potential to supplement, improve, or replace survey data with administrative or other extant data
    • Applying appropriate procedures to produce point and variance estimates, including from samples with complex designs
  • Conduct technical reviews of data collection and data processing plans and specifications (e.g., sampling plans, weighting plans, editing and imputation specifications, non-response bias analyses) for accuracy, completeness, and technical soundness
  • Author technical reports, memoranda, and documentation
  • Clearly communicate methods, findings, and implications to technical and non-technical policy audiences
  • Develop and manage budgets (in collaboration with a Project Manager) and communicate timelines, scope, and resources with clients
  • Ensure the quality, accuracy, and consistency of all work products through appropriate QA/QC processes
  • Supervise and mentor research staff in completing project tasks and supporting professional development
  • Work effectively in a highly collaborative, multidisciplinary team environment and contribute to and lead proposal development
  • Contribute thoughtfully and creatively to project teams
  • Assist with conducting disclosure risk analyses on restricted- and public-use data files to ensure the protection of measured entities

Qualifications:

Education, Knowledge, and Experience

  • Ph.D. in such fields as survey methodology, economics, psychology, sociology, statistics, computer science, public policy, public health, or other social science related fields plus 8 or more years of relevant experience
  • Demonstrated understanding of survey methodology and survey operations (e.g., questionnaire design, cognitive interviews, survey administration, weighting, non-response bias, and data analysis) 
  • Experience with clinical quality measure development 
  • Experience with statistical software packages such as Stata, SAS, WPS, R, Python 
  • Proficient understanding of basic descriptive and inferential statistics (e.g. cross-tabulations, t-tests, and chi-square tests) and methodological concepts  
  • Experience leading, developing, and writing proposals for federal agencies. 
  • Experience leading projects 
  • Direct experience with CMS is strongly preferred, but not required

Skills:

  • Effective communicator about survey methods, results, and recommendations to both technical and non-technical audiences 
  • Strong attention to detail and commitment to rigorous quality control 
  • Strong organizational and interpersonal skills  
  • Ability to work as part of a team and support multiple tasks 
  • Comfortable working in a virtual/dispersed work environment

Disclosures: Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the U.S. on a full-time basis. Employment-based visa sponsorship (including H-1B sponsorship) is not available for this position. Depending on project work, qualified candidates may need to meet certain residency requirements.

American Institutes for Research is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without discrimination on the basis of any characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local law, including, but not limited to, actual or perceived race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture, hair type, and protective hairstyles such as braid, locks, and twists), creed, color, religion, alienage or national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition (e.g., cancer), sex, gender, gender identity or expression (including transgender status), sexual orientation, marital status, civil union status, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, genetic information, or military or veteran status. AIR adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo reference and background checks. AIR maintains a drug-free work environment.

ACCESSIBILITY NOTICE: If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process due to a physical or mental disability, please send an email to Taliba Boone at tboone@air.org or call 202.403.5000.

Fraudulent Job Scams Warning & Disclaimer: AIR is aware of individuals falsely presenting themselves as AIR representatives. Fraudulent job scams seek to extract sensitive information or money from victims. To protect yourself, please be aware that AIR recruitment will only email you from an “@air.org” domain. Please take extra caution while examining the email address, for example jdoe@air.org is correct and jdoe@aircareers.org is not a legitimate AIR email address. If you are unsure of the legitimacy of a communication you have received, please reach out to recruitment@air.org. If you see a job scam, or lose money to one, report it to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. You can also report it to your state attorney general. Find out more about how to avoid scams atftc.gov/scams.

#LI-MP1 #LI-Remote

AIR’s Total Rewards Program, is designed to reward our staff competitively and motivate them to achieve our critical mission. This position offers the anticipated annual salary as listed. Salary offers are made based on internal equity within the institution and external equity with competitive markets. Please note this is the annual salary range for candidates that are based in the United States.

Anticipated Annual Salary Range

$155,000 - $190,000 USD

Create a Job Alert

Interested in building your career at American Institutes for Research? Get future opportunities sent straight to your email.

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Phone
Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf


Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...

NOTE: Selecting “no” will not eliminate you from consideration for a job. Message and data rates may apply, depending on your mobile phone service plan. At any time, you can get more help by replying HELP to these texts, or you can opt out completely by replying STOP.  

View AIR's SMS/Text Terms of Service and Text/SMS Message Privacy Policy.

Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in American Institutes for Research’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Select...
Select...
Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305
Page 1 of 1
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Select...

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.