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Postdoctoral Scholar - Risk-Resilience Lab -School of Social Welfare and Goldman School of Public Policy

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Position description

Position: Postdoctoral Scholar-Employee
Location: University of California, Berkeley, CA
Salary Range: Commensurate with experience

Position Overview
The Risk-Resilience Lab at the University of California, Berkeley - http://risk-resilience.berkeley.edu/ - creates data-driven insights that inform efforts to prevent crime, improve decision-making about people involved in the justice system, and achieve effective and equitable justice reform. Professor Jennifer Skeem and her team are seeking a postdoctoral scholar to work on analyses of wellbeing among people at risk for (repeated) involvement in the justice system.

This is a full-time, one-year term position with the possibility of renewal contingent upon funding and satisfactory performance.

This is a designated position requiring fingerprinting and a background check due to the nature of the job responsibilities. Berkeley does hire people with conviction histories and reviews information received in the context of job responsibilities. The University reserves the right to make employment contingent upon successful completion of the background check.

Job Description
The post-doc will primarily collaborate with the team on two studies in different phases of development: (1) initiating the new “Play for Change” project, which brings local at-risk youth together with world-class experts to develop and test an engaging digital intervention or “serious game” to prevent aggression and promote prosocial behavior, and (2) wrapping up the “Interventions” project; a field experiment conducted with over 700 justice-involved people with mental illness to test an innovative treatment approach. The post-doc will be expected to spend 70% of their time on these projects (including co-authored papers), and 30% of their time on self-generated projects. This position creates explicit opportunities to build a research portfolio through involvement in every aspect of research—from design to data collection, to analysis and reporting. The post-doc will have access to a wealth of professional development, training, and collaboration resources across the UC Berkeley campus.

Evaluation Criteria
Each application will be evaluated on the following criteria:
• The degree of fit of research interests
• How the postdoctoral training will help to further the postdoctoral scholar’s research trajectory
• Demonstrated record of work with quantitative data (including longitudinal data) and methods of causal inference
• Demonstrated quality of writing
• Strength of letters of support

Basic Qualifications (by position start date):
• Ph.D. (or equivalent international degree)

Preferred Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in one of a variety of relevant social science or technical fields, including but not limited to Psychology, Economics, Sociology, Criminology, Public Health, Public Policy, Computer Science, Statistics
• Demonstrated knowledge of at least one of the lab's major project areas such as developmental science, mental health, gaming
• A superior academic performance and publication record
• Advanced statistical training, including familiarity with methods for experimental and non-experimental causal inference
• Proficiency with R or with another statistical program (SPSS, STATA, etc.) and a commitment to learning whatever language is appropriate for given projects
• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written
• Demonstrated ability to successfully lead a team of undergraduate and graduate students

Additional Information
The position will remain open until filled.

UC Postdocs are exclusively represented by the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW) local (5810). Salary commensurate with experience. Salary scales for Postdoctoral Scholars are set by the University of California and the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW). See:
https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/_files/1920/2020-postdoc-scales/t23.pdf

Letters of reference are required as part of the application. All letters will be treated as confidential per University of California policy and California state law. Please refer potential referees to the UC Berkeley statement of confidentiality: https://apo.berkeley.edu/ucb-confidentiality-policy

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status. See; http://policy.ucop.edu/doc/4000376/NondiscrimAffirmAct

We encourage candidates from groups that are historically underrepresented in academic research to apply. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are core values at UC Berkeley.

Please direct questions to Dr. Sharon Farrell at smfarrell@berkeley.edu.

To apply, please go to the following link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF02840

Application Requirements

Document requirements
  • Curriculum Vitae - Your most recently updated C.V.

  • Cover Letter

  • Publication - Sample paper or publication.

Reference requirements
  • 3 letters of reference required

Job location

Berkeley, CA