Skip to content
Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology

Rapid Reviews: COVID-19, New Overlay Journal

The MIT Press and UC Berkeley have launched Rapid Reviews: COVID-19, an open access, rapid-review, overlay journal that will accelerate peer review of COVID-19-related research and deliver real-time, verified scientific information that policymakers and health leaders can use.

Scientists and researchers are working overtime to understand the SARS-CoV-2 virus and are producing an unprecedented amount of preprint scholarship that is publicly available online, but has not been vetted yet by peer review for accuracy. Traditional peer review can take four or more weeks to complete, but the new journal’s editorial team will produce expert reviews in a matter of days.

 

2020 UndocuGrad Conference

UC Merced’s virtual 2020 UndocuGrad Conference will feature weekly webinars designed to acquaint students from undocumented communities with academic and career opportunities past the baccalaureate. Participants will receive helpful information and resources for applying to and navigating through graduate/professional school, as well as advice on successfully transitioning to the job market. The conference will also highlight inspirational success stories from former and current undocumented graduate students and professionals in order to facilitate a strong sense of belonging and professionalization amongst the undocumented community.

This virtual conference is FREE and open to undocumented individuals interested in or currently attending graduate/professional school and those who want to know about available career opportunities regardless of their status. Allies are also welcome!

Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research (Parent F31-Diversity)

The purpose of this Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research award is to enhance the diversity of the health-related research workforce by supporting the research training of predoctoral students from diverse backgrounds including those from groups that are underrepresented in the biomedical, behavioral, or clinical research workforce.

Through this award program, promising predoctoral students will obtain individualized, mentored research training from outstanding faculty sponsors while conducting well-defined research projects in scientific health-related fields relevant to the missions of the participating NIH Institutes and Centers. The proposed mentored research training is expected to clearly enhance the individual’s potential to develop into a productive, independent research scientist.

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) does not allow applicants to propose to lead an independent clinical trial, a clinical trial feasibility study, or an ancillary clinical trial, but does allow applicants to propose research experience in a clinical trial led by a sponsor or co-sponsor.

Application Deadline: August 8, December 8, April 8 until July 6, 2022

Chief Data Officer, Department of Commerce

Summary

The Department of Commerce is seeking a highly-motivated and capable executive to serve as the Chief Data Officer. This position is a Senior Executive Service (SES) general position. Positions in the SES are not graded. SES pay is commensurate with qualifications. SES employees are eligible for bonuses and awards based on performance. Veteran’s preference is not applicable to SES.

Embark on a new career that is challenging and exciting!

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

Positioned within the Department of Commerce’s Office of the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, and working in close coordination with the Statistical Official and Evaluation Officer, we are seeking diverse, innovative, and strategic thinkers to help lead the department through this important evolution toward the routine use of data as a strategic asset. You will serve as the departmental Chief Data Officer, with the appropriate technical expertise, and in coordination with the Under Secretary and the Statistical Official will lead department-wide efforts on data policy and governance. Join the Office of the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs where you will work alongside the Chief Economist.  In addition to these functions, the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs provides oversight and policy coordination for the department’s two principal statistical agencies, the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Census Bureau.The Department of Commerce is “America’s Data Agency” producing terabytes of data daily on all aspects of America’s people, economy, and environment.

As the Chief Data Officer, you will:

  • Provide leadership to manage data assets within the Department, in conjunction with the Statistical Official, including leading the standardization of data formats, sharing of data assets, and publication of data assets to ensure compliance with applicable law and Department policy.
  • Ensure that the data and data needs of the bureaus are met by providing Department-wide coordination with data users and departmental officials responsible for generating, disseminating, protecting, and using data.
  • Carry out the statutory and regulatory requirements related to information resources management and the collection of information across the Department, including the Paperwork Reduction Act’s required coordination and certification of information collection requests (ICRs) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
  • Review the impact of the infrastructure on data asset accessibility and coordinate with the Chief Information Officer of the Department to improve such infrastructure to reduce barriers that inhibit data asset accessibility for evidence building.
  • Serve as the Department’s liaison to other federal agencies and OMB.

Travel Required

Occasional travel – Travel required to attend or present at meetings and conferences on topics relevant to the Office of the Under Secretary’s mission.

ICPSR’s Blalock Lecture Series on Quantitative Methods

Check out this opportunity to virtually attend the ICPSR Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research’s Blalock lectures series tuition-free. Blalock Lectures are an integral part of the ICPSR Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research. They are presented in the evening from 7:30 to 9 p.m. EDT outside of the regular curriculum. The lecture series is held in honor of Tad Blalock (https://sociology.unc.edu/hubert-morse-blalock-jr/), a distinguished statistician and sociologist who was an Official Representative to the Consortium and a member of its Executive Council.

These lectures are all FREE to join and open to the public. Each lecture will be available via this Zoom link: 2020 Blalock Zoom Webinars.

In addition, each lecture is recorded and will be available on the Summer Program YouTube channel in this playlist: 2020 Blalock Lecture Series

The remaining schedule for the 2020 Summer Program Blalock Lecture Series (text version below):

July 22: “Research Developments in the Study of Racialized Resentment” – David Wilson, University of Delaware

July 28: “The American National Election Study and Archived Data at ICPSR” – Vincent Hutchings, University of Michigan; David Thomas, University of Michigan

July 29: “Citizen Forecasting: The Formation of Voter Expectations and Their Aggregate Accuracy” – Mary Stegmaier, University of Missouri

July 30: “Preparing to Teach for the First (or Second) Time” – Lynette Hoelter, University of Michigan; Esther Wilder, Lehman College; Andrea Benjamin, University of Oklahoma

August 4: “Statistical Models of Election Outcomes” – Andrew Gelman, Columbia University

August 5: “Health Disparities across the Life Cycle” – DeAnnah Byrd, Wayne State University

August 6: “Detroit Metropolitan Area Community Study and Archived Data at ICPSR” – Jeff Morenoff, University of Michigan

August 11: “The Chitwan Valley Family Study and Archived Data at ICPSR” – Bill Axinn, University of Michigan; Lynette Hoelter, University of Michigan

August 12: “Identity Development among Young Black Men” – Lloyd Talley, University of Michigan

Postdoctoral Researcher in Rural Demography

Call for applications, Postdoctoral researcher in rural demography

Applications are invited for a position as a postdoctoral researcher at the Centre on Population Dynamics, McGill University, Québec, Canada, under the supervision of Shelley Clark, James McGill Professor of Sociology. The initial appointment will be for one year but the appointment may be renewed for a second year based on performance.

Substantive Focus

The position will focus on rural and urban inequalities in North America, specifically the U.S. and Canada. Research will examine rural-urban differences with respect to one or more of the following substantive areas: family dynamics, fertility, health, transitions to adulthood, internal migration, education, and poverty.

Responsibilities

Responsibilities will primarily entail working collaboratively on Professor Clark’s existing research pertaining to rural America as well as developing new related projects, which may be led by the postdoctoral researcher. These activities include literature reviews, data management, coding, and cleaning, data analysis, drafting papers for publication, and presentation of results. The position does not entail any teaching.

Eligibility Criteria

Candidates are required to hold a Ph.D. in sociology, demography, social geography, public health, or a related field prior to the expected start date. Prior experience working on rural issues is preferred, but not required, given sufficient knowledge of one or more of the substantive areas. Candidates must have strong statistical skills, extensive experience working with complex quantitative data, and excellent Stata and/or R programming skills and experience. Experience working with one or more nationally representative, longitudinal studies in the U.S. or Canada is preferred. Training in basic geographical software is also an asset. Candidates must work well in a collaborative research environment. Excellent ability to communicate in English, both spoken and written, is essential. Knowledge of French is not required but is an advantage.

Position

Depending on the candidate’s availability the position may begin as early as January 4, 2021, but no later than July 5, 2021. Salary is negotiable but expected to be in the range of major federal Canadian funding agencies (CA$45,000‐50,000 per year, plus benefits).

Given the current pandemic, while residence in Montreal is preferred, other working arrangements may be considered on a case‐by‐case basis. For more information on the cost of living in Montreal: https://www.numbeo.com/cost‐of‐living/in/Montreal.

Application Process

Applicants should submit via email 1) a letter of interest, 2) a C.V., and 3) one article-length writing sample to Professor Clark (shelley.clark@mcgill.ca) with the email subject heading “Rural Inequalities Postdoctoral Researcher”. Applicants should also request that two letters of recommendation be sent directly to shelley.clark@mcgill.ca. Review of applications will begin August 15, 2020, and will continue until the position is filled.

Eligibility is open with respect to citizenship; applicants should note in their cover letter whether they are already authorized to work in Canada (whether through citizenship, permanent residency, or a work visa). Information on applying for a work permit in Canada is available at https://www.mcgill.ca/gps/postdocs/international/workpermit . Complete information about the status of postdoctoral researcher at McGill is available at https://www.mcgill.ca/gps/postdocs/fellows .

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Postdoctoral Researcher, Health Data at Scale Collaboratory (UC San Diego)

We are seeking a postdoctoral researcher with specialization in data science, geographic, and statistical methods, as well as domain knowledge in public health applications. The research fellow will work with PIs Marta Jankowska, Tarik Benmarhnia, and Loki Natarajan at UCSD. The primary project seeks to develop methods for understanding minute-level predictors of physical activity, sleep, eating behaviors or metabolic related diseases as influenced by environmental contextual factors such as green spaces, noise, or air pollution in a longitudinal randomized control trial. Additional projects focus on advanced methods for dynamic environmental exposure estimation using GPS and accelerometer sensors, novel environmental measures through use of machine learning as applied to satellite imagery, and complex data integration.

Applicants should possess a Ph.D. in a quantitative field such as Environmental Health, GIScience, Computer Science, Epidemiology or Biostatistics with ample experience working with large and complex data sets in a programming language such as R or Python. Excellent scientific writing, strong oral communication skills, and ability to collaborate with colleagues from different disciplines is required. Review of applications will begin August 1st, 2020 with flexible start date (preferred by September 1st). Submit CV, cover letter describing research interests, 2-3 samples of scholarly writing (published, under review, or in preparation), and contact information for two references to Marta Jankowska (majankowska@eng.ucsd.edu).

Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Florida (UF)

The University of Florida is seeking applicants to fill one postdoctoral research associate. They will be part of a transdisciplinary project—in collaboration with Columbia University (CU) and East Carolina University (ECU)—entitled “Towards a Multi-scale Theory of Coupled Human Mobility and Environment Change.”  The project aims at applying a mixed-methods approach to develop a modeling framework that integrates environmental modeling, social dynamics, and migration theories and then to use such a modeling framework to develop an integrative theory of coupled dynamics of migration and environmental change.  Some of the methods include dynamical system modeling, multilayer network approaches, climate and hydrological modeling, and Bayesian inference analyses.  Different aspects of the project will be conducted across the three universities.  The team will meet remotely on a regular basis and annual workshops will be held where all the team members will meet in person.

Applicants for the postdoc positions must demonstrate strong interest in transdisciplinary research and a PhD degree in the social sciences or related/relevant fields.   We explicitly specify the last qualification to reflect the importance of integration across disciplines in the project. To provide the areas of expertise involved in this project, brief descriptions of the participating faculty’s expertise are provided below.

Interested candidates should submit a CV, a cover letter, and three references to Dr. Jeffrey Johnson: johnsonje@ufl.edu. The review process will start immediately.  The position will start as soon as August 2020. The position will stay open until filled.

Call for Papers: AEA CSQIEP Economics of LGBTQ+ Individuals Virtual Seminar Series

The American Economic Association Committee on the Status of LGBTQ+ Individuals in the Economics Profession (CSQIEP) will continue its virtual seminar series this fall.   Researchers across the career spectrum are most welcome.  We hope you will consider attending and presenting your work.

Job market candidates: We hope this can be an opportunity to support your success on the upcoming job market.  We will prioritize you for presentations early in the fall semester.

We want to support those of you who identify as LGBTQ+ regardless of your area of research.  We are looking for research in any field by LGBTQ+ job market candidates.

We recognize that presenting in a public forum involves disclosure of your identity.  If you are not comfortable disclosing publicly, we still want to support you.  We are able to schedule some more discreet seminars that will not be publicly advertised and will have a limited audience.  Please contact Mike Martell (mmartell@bard.edu) if you would like to pursue this option. Discretion assured.

Researchers of all ranks:  We welcome your LGBTQ+ related research regardless of your identity.

If you are interested in attending, please indicate your interest here:  here

If you re interested in presenting, please indicate your interest here: here

Please contact Mike Martell (mmartell@bard.edu) with any questions or feedback.  You can view the details of our Spring/Summer seminar here: https://www.aeaweb.org/about-aea/committees/aealgbtq/virtual-seminars

For more information on CSQIEP, please see https://www.aeaweb.org/about-aea/committees/aealgbtq.