Data Analyst - Office of Institutional Research & Analysis

at  Washington University in St Louis

POSITION SUMMARY

The Office of Institutional Research & Analysis, part of the Office of the Provost, supports the university’s senior leadership through the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on issues of institutional importance. We are seeking a Data Analyst to be a key contributor and collaborate with other team members to help realize the Office’s goals of presenting important institutional data to diverse audiences and executing research projects that address strategic questions for the University.
The role is expected to serve as a technical lead within the team and will be responsible for developing and deploying data-driven applications for analytic projects. The position is also expected to lead and contribute to analytic projects, including working with clients to scope and define analyses and communicating findings to audiences across the University. The ideal candidate will have detailed knowledge of statistical methods, the ability to communicate both the findings and limitations of statistical analyses, as well as experience in building and maintaining data-driven applications to support the effective use of institutional data, working with technical consultants, and evaluating data tools.
The individual in this position will be highly detail-oriented, a skilled problem-solver and technical analyst, experienced at data extraction across multiple platforms, and possess the ability to communicate data analysis to multiple constituents with various levels of data acumen.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Doctoral degree in applied statistics, biostatistics, social sciences, educational research, or related field.
• Experience in providing quantitative analysis to support senior management in a university environment.
• Strong quantitative, statistical and analytical skills; demonstrated ability to synthesize and transform complex data sets into user-friendly dissemination products (e.g., report, dashboards, briefs).
• Command of SPSS, SAS, or equivalent; experience with integrated databases and query languages.
• Understanding of appropriate statistical tests for various analysis situations (including, but not limited to correlation, ANOVA, t-test, chi-square).
• Demonstrated experience in designing and implementing data management protocols and processes and strong attention to detail and accuracy in editing, record-keeping, etc.
• Demonstrated knowledge of best practices for visualization and communicating results to variety of audiences.
• Advance skills in creating data visualizations using business intelligence software, ideally with experience in Tableau and/or Power BI.
• Experience working with data sets in various conditions/formats and which require building relationships across disparate data sources to create a comprehensive data model.
• Skilled in cleaning, standardizing, filtering, and transforming data to create datasets ready to be analyzed and displayed graphically.
• Understands what makes for a compelling visualization, can “tell a story” using data, and can draw insights from large datasets.
• Successful candidates will have to experience with the Microsoft Office suite and the ability to collaborate effectively with others on the platform.
• A broad understanding of the issues of higher education, research methods, and statistical techniques.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively, handle multiple projects, and meet deadlines.
• Strong interpersonal, written, verbal, and presentation skills.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Bachelor’s degree and four years’ related work experience or Master’s degree in math, statistics, economics computer science, psychology, social work or related field plus two years’ related work experience.

• Manages a set of institutional surveys in collaboration with internal and national partners. Collects, cleans, maintains, and manages data to allow for longitudinal comparisons and comparisons with peer institutions. Designs and creates reports to deliver results to WashU colleagues.
• Builds automated, actionable and accurate reporting dashboards. Collects and interprets requirements and translates them into data visualizations. Recommends and implements automation of reporting; identifies and implements opportunities to streamline and improve processes.
• Conducts ad hoc research, analysis and presentation of institutional data to answer questions raised by WU senior management, including comparisons with peer institutions.
• Performs other duties as assigned.