Student Research Scientist in the Nebraska Evaluation and Research Center

Do you like to work with statistics? How about designing research studies to answer important questions? Would you like to learn best practices in developing data collection tools like surveys, questionnaires, or tests? Better yet, are you curious about how statistical tools, different research designs, and fair measurement practices allow social, behavioral, and educational researchers to inform policy and practice?

We are the Nebraska Evaluation and Research (NEAR) Center, a university center dedicated to conducting applied, multidisciplinary research across various social, behavioral, and educational fields including education, psychology, sociology, political science, child development, neuroscience, exercise science, and research methodology. Our collaborative efforts involve (a) working with faculty, students, and clients from both campus and community settings to support them in accomplishing their research objectives, and (b) evaluating the critical role choice of research tools and methodologies play in enhancing the quality of research objectives. As a UCARE student within our center, you will gain proficiency in using modern data collection methods, analytical software, and open-access data that will enable you to evaluate programs, understand theories, explore nuances among comparative groups, and validate measurement systems.  

As a UCARE student within our center you will be a part of ongoing methodological and substantive research conducted in the center. For instance, 

1. You might investigate whether kids who play sports have stronger academic performance.  
2. You may focus on how to adapt an intervention on-the-fly during its implementation yet still draw valid conclusions regarding its effectiveness.  
3. You may delve into how to deal with respondents who do not complete the entire assessment when evaluating a community program.  
4. You may help uncover emerging themes in educator experiences related to teacher burnout and turnover.  

Because of our multidisciplinary approach, the competencies developed through our projects will equip UCARE students with a diverse set of transferable skills that can be applied to their own future research endeavors.

We currently seek UCARE students interested in one of our three broad research themes: 

• Adolescent development with a focus on exercise/sport participation, nutrition, cognition, socioemotional learning, mental health, and academic performance.  
• Missing data or participant nonresponse, its influence on inference-making, and imputation method solutions. 
• Dynamic or efficient assessment and adaptive research designs or interventions.

Other topics and projects may emerge during the UCARE student’s time with the center.  

• Potential Student Tasks: 
• Obtain the basic competencies of a statistical software package and data management. 
• Merge, clean, validate, and transcribe data that are relevant to student research questions. 
• Review methodological and theoretical literature to defend and bolster hypothesis testing. 
• Explore or analyze data by building and testing statistical models, coding qualitative data. 
• Compile evidence from analyses into a deliverable (e.g., capstone project, academic conference poster, manuscript outline).

Student Qualifications: 
CITI training (in the Human Research for Social/Behavioral Research Investigators and Key Personnel Program; free to UNL students, can be completed before the start date) and access to a computer is required. Applicants should have experience with basic statistical concepts, however you do not need to know everything. Some statistical or spreadsheet software (e.g., Excel) knowledge is beneficial, though none is necessary. Instead, applicants should be open to learning through exploration and self-interest. Applicants should have effective communication skills and the ability to balance their research commitments with other responsibilities. Because the NEAR Center is a collaborative environment, applicants should be able to work well in teams or small groups.