About FIRE:

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression’s mission is to defend and sustain the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and free thought — the most essential qualities of liberty. FIRE educates Americans about the importance of these inalienable rights, promotes a culture of respect for these rights, and provides the means to preserve them.

Position Description:

FIRE is seeking a talented and driven Graduate Summer Research Associate to join our team for summer 2025. The Graduate Summer Research Associate is open to current graduate students (2nd year or later) with strong interests and experience in the social sciences, survey research, data analysis, and research methods.

The Summer Research Associate will work at FIRE full-time for a 10-week period at FIRE’s Philadelphia or D.C. office. This position is only available for students residing in the U.S. for the duration of the assignment.

Structure of the Assignment:

The Summer Research Associate will work closely with FIRE’s Manager of Polling and Analytics, and contribute to select Research Department projects. It is important that there be a good match between the Summer Research Associate’s interests and skills and the needs of ongoing FIRE research projects.

The Manager of Polling and Analytics will work with the Summer Research Associate to curate a meaningful, project-based experience that is aligned with the Summer Research Associate’s background and qualifications. The Manager of Polling and Analytics will also provide career guidance and facilitate networking with other FIRE researchers.

By the completion of the assignment, in addition to contributing to ongoing FIRE research projects, the Summer Research Associate is expected to have at least one academic paper involving FIRE data submitted or ready to be submitted to a peer-reviewed academic journal. The Summer Research Associate will also present a brief seminar at the end of the summer experience.

Some of the data collected and managed by FIRE’s Research Department data includes:

• The College Free Speech Rankings: Our annual survey on student free speech attitudes and experiences (2020-present)
• Faculty free speech attitudes and experiences (2022 and 2024 surveys)
• Scholars Under Fire Database
• Students Under Fire Database
• Deplatforming Database

Requirements and Desired Skills:

The Graduate Summer Research Associate position is designed for a full-time graduate student who has completed at least two years of graduate work leading to a doctorate degree. Students should be enrolled full-time in a graduate degree program during the spring and fall of 2025 to be considered for the position. Some exceptions may be made for master’s students, or for advanced doctoral students graduating prior to September 2025.

Students must be legally authorized to work in the United States, and must reside in the United States throughout the assignment.

Desired Skills and Experience:

• Current graduate student (2nd year or later)
• An understanding of FIRE’s mission and work
• Interest and experience in the social sciences, survey research, data analysis, and research methods Quantitative and/or qualitative research methods experience
• Statistical or general-purpose programming knowledge and experience (e.g., SPSS, R, SAS, Stata)
• Conscientiousness, and able to work both independently and collaboratively on a team
• Creativity, flexibility, and problem-solving abilities
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to set and meet project objectives and goals

Applications:

Applicants should provide a CV or resume, cover letter, a writing sample (preferably a published, in-press, or under review academic paper for which you were the lead author), and at least two professional references . All applications are confidential. Please address applications to Cait Scanlan, Director of People Operations. Applications will be received on a rolling basis.

Applications are due by May 2, 11:59 p.m. EST.

FIRE is an equal opportunity employer.