[Hiring] Research Data Engineer/Statistical Programmer @Colorado State University

Role Description

In the summer of 2026, CIRA was awarded two years' worth of funding by the Weather Program Office to conduct a project, “Using Quick Response Surveys to Develop and Pilot Test Flood Risk Communication”. The Quick Response Survey (QRS) project seeks a part-time (70% FTE) Research Data Engineer or Statistical Programmer to develop and maintain a reproducible data-management system for surveys of public perception and response to hazardous weather.

• The existing QRS repository includes approximately 13,000 responses from 34 survey waves organized into three distinct but structurally similar hazard databases.
• The initial work will include regularizing the historical databases and processing approximately 15 to 20 additional survey waves.
• The selected individual will develop a system that can scale to support future national implementation involving as many as 150 forecast offices conducting an average of four surveys per year.
• The position will be performed remotely and will involve regular collaboration with QRS researchers and institutional partners.
• The individual will report directly to the SBES Data and Methods Advisor.
• The period of performance for this project runs through April 2028. If necessary, a no-cost extension will be requested.

Essential Job Duties

• Review and harmonize approximately 13,000 historical responses from 34 survey waves into three consistently structured and documented hazard databases.
• Develop and maintain a master variable crosswalk and standardize variable names, labels, response codes, missing-value conventions, and derived-variable procedures across survey waves.
• Design and implement a reproducible pipeline using Stata, Python, and other appropriate tools to import, clean, validate, harmonize, and append survey data from Qualtrics and other approved sources.
• Develop the pipeline to process a set of approximately 15 to 20 survey waves and scale to approximately 600 waves annually without substantial rewriting of the core processing system.
• Incorporate forecast-office-distributed surveys and purchased probability, quota, panel, or other vendor-provided samples while preserving recruitment source, survey wave, weights, quotas, and other available sample-design information.
• Establish procedures for identifying, documenting, and managing changes to survey questions, response options, variable names, survey modules, and incoming data structures.
• Create automated quality-control checks and exception reports for unexpected variables, coding changes, duplicate records, missing metadata, invalid values, and other data inconsistencies.
• Produce fully documented and analysis-ready data files in Stata, R, and CSV formats, with Stata files and processing decisions readable and auditable by project researchers.
• Maintain processing code, variable crosswalks, codebooks, data dictionaries, change histories, and standard operating procedures in an approved version-control environment.
• Follow applicable Institutional Review Board requirements.

Conditions of Employment

• Must be legally authorized to work in the United States by the start of the position and through the entirety of the project (2 years from start date), because CIRA will not sponsor any type of visa for this position now nor in the future.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in data science, computer science, statistics, information science, social science, or a related field, plus three years relevant professional experience, OR Master’s degree in data science, computer science, statistics, information science, social science, or a related field.
• Experience managing and programming data in Stata, including reproducible .do files, merges, appends, macros, loops, labels, and data-validation procedures.
• Experience producing fully labeled, documented, and analysis-ready Stata files.
• Experience writing data-processing or scientific software in languages such as Python.
• Experience developing reproducible and documented data-processing workflows.
• Experience using version-control tools such as Git or GitHub.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Qualtrics survey structures, response exports, APIs, or survey metadata.
• Experience harmonizing multi-wave, longitudinal, repeated cross-sectional, or multi-source datasets.
• Experience working with confidential, restricted, or human-subjects research data.
• Familiarity with survey weights and sample-design variables.
• Experience using R and packages such as haven or the tidyverse.
• Experience producing consistent Stata, R, and CSV outputs from a common data-processing workflow.
• Experience using LLM-assisted programming tools for code development, schema comparison, testing, or documentation.
• Experience working in an academic research center, government agency, policy institute, or similar research setting.
• Experience in social science research.
• Strong technical writing, documentation, problem-solving, and communication skills as evidenced by an appropriate cover letter.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a remote research environment as evidenced by prior remote work experience.

Application Instructions

• Applications must be submitted via online portal. We will not accept materials sent via email or other mode.
• COVER LETTERS ARE REQUIRED.
• In the body of your resume, please specifically address all required qualifications and applicable preferred qualifications when describing your work experience. A resume that fails to address the qualifications of this position may not be further considered after review by the search committee.
• Likewise, an online application with a generic cover letter or missing a cover letter may not be further considered after review by the search committee.
• References will be requested for finalists and will not be contacted without prior notification of candidates.
• Search contact: [email protected].

Salary Range

• $45,000-$50,000 at 70% FTE, 28 hrs/week.
• Full salary is calculated at max of $72,000 which takes into consideration organizational RA II salary, level of education/experience and project budget.

Required Application Documents

• Cover Letter
• Resume/CV

Employee Benefits

Colorado State University is not just a workplace; it’s a thriving community that’s transforming lives and improving the human condition through world-class teaching, research, and service. With a robust benefits package, collaborative atmosphere, and focus on work-life balance, CSU is where you can thrive, grow, and make a lasting impact.

Background Check Policy Statement

Colorado State University strives to provide a safe study, work, and living environment for its faculty, staff, volunteers, and students. To support this environment and comply with applicable laws and regulations, CSU conducts background checks for the finalist before a final offer.

EEO

Colorado State University (CSU) provides equal employment opportunities to all applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.