The Survey Center on American Life is a project of the American Enterprise Institute. Our dedicated team conducts original survey research to examine how cultural, political, and technological changes affect the lives of everyday Americans.
Interested in joining the team? Please see below for opportunities.
Internships are available at the Survey Center on American Life for the Fall, Spring, and Summer to experienced undergraduate students, graduate students, and recent graduates.
Research Assistant: Survey Center on American Life
The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) seeks a full-time, in-person research assistant to work on polling, demographic trends, and American politics for AEI’s Survey Center on American Life, directed by Senior Fellow Daniel A. Cox. The anticipated start date for this position is fall 2026.
Responsibilities for this position include assisting with research, writing, and editing for reports, newsletters, articles, op-eds, and media appearances. The person in this position will also help manage the Survey Center’s online presence. This includes posting on social media, tracking online engagement and metrics, administering website properties, creating charts and graphics from survey data, and monitoring media impact. The research assistant will also be responsible for number checking and fact-checking all the Survey Center’s published materials, including Dr. Cox’s bimonthly newsletter. Additional responsibilities include using statistical software programs to clean, manipulate, and analyze data. Finally, this research assistant is responsible for helping plan and execute conferences and events. Duties include long-term projects and administrative support.
Desired qualifications for this position include excellent organizational and writing skills, social media account management experience, attention to detail, and a demonstrated interest in social policy, demographic trends, social capital, American governmental institutions, and social mobility. Prior experience with data analytics is a plus. Knowledge of current events, politics, and cultural and economic news is also important.
Qualified applicants should include their resume, a cover letter, academic transcripts, and a 500-word writing sample on a topic related to American politics or public opinion studies with their online application at www.aei.org/jobs.
Responsibilities
- Research (60 Percent)
- Assist with designing and developing survey questionnaires.
- Coordinate number checking and fact-checking for research products and published work.
- Analyze and clean survey data, create banners and toplines, and support Dr. Cox’s data and research requests.
- Help coordinate and respond to media requests; assist in developing talking points for media interviews and television appearances.
- Assist in developing graphics for research reports, blog posts, newsletters, and presentations using Flourish.
- Provide research and editorial assistance.
- Coordinate research projects.
- Communications (30 Percent)
- Manage content on the Survey Center’s website, including by posting and formatting new reports, blog posts, and op-eds using WordPress.
- Work with the communications assistant to identify content to promote on social media channels.
- Track and analyze metrics to quantify the performance of the Survey Center’s website, social media presence, and news media impact.
- Use Flourish to create images and visuals to accompany all research reports, blog posts, and newsletters published on the Survey Center’s website.
- Administration (10 Percent)
- Assist with public events and private meetings.
- Manage Dr. Cox’s contacts database and calendar.
- Oversee Dr. Cox’s content on AEI’s website.
- Hire interns and manage their workloads throughout their internship term.
Physical Requirements and Working Conditions at AEI
- The employee is expected to regularly stand, sit, talk, hear, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer, telephone, and keyboard. This job requires close-up vision for computer work.
- The employee must be able to lift up to 30 pounds.
- The employee must be able to work in a confined area.
- Moderate noise (e.g., from computers, phones, printers, and light traffic) is expected.
- Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential responsibilities associated with this position.
Qualifications
- A BA or BS in political science, sociology, statistics, or a related field at the start date is required.
- 0–2 years of previous applicable full-time work experience is required; previous internship or research experience is strongly preferred.
- Candidates should have the following:
- Professional writing, editing, research, and quantitative analysis experience (preferred)
- A demonstrated interest in public-opinion research, demographic trends, political behavior, and current events
- Experience in quantitative methods and research, including Stata (highly preferred), and R (a plus)
- Excellent editing and proofreading skills
- Experience in social media management, especially X (a plus)
- Proficiency in performing administrative and logistical coordination tasks
- Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work well with a variety of people and in fast-paced environments
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office
Benefits
AEI offers generous benefits, including 18 days of paid leave (15 days of paid annual leave and three personal or floating holidays); 12 days of paid sick leave; paid family leave; medical and dental coverage, in addition to a health savings account; a medical and dependent care flexible spending account; a tuition assistance program of up to $5,200; life and disability insurance at no cost to employees; and a 403(b) retirement plan with a contribution from AEI, among other benefits. For more information, you can see a full summary of our benefits at https://www.aei.org/jobs/benefits/.
Compensation is based on a number of factors, including but not limited to: scope and responsibilities of the position; a candidate’s full-time, applicable work experience; key skills and qualifications; and internal and external market considerations. The salary range for this full-time, exempt position is $50,000 – $54,000. Salary is just one component of AEI’s total compensation package for employees.
Fall Intern: Survey Center on American Life
The American Enterprise Institute seeks an intern who will assist Senior Fellow Daniel A. Cox, director of the Survey Center on American Life. Dr. Cox is an expert on polling and public opinion and specializes in survey research, politics, generational change and identity, and religion. The intern will have the opportunity to work on a range of public opinion projects and gain exposure to various survey analysis techniques and polling methodologies, with an emphasis on studying the growing gender divide in public opinion among young people for a forthcoming book by Dr. Cox.
Applicants should be eager to understand the way cultural and political changes are shaping the lives of ordinary Americans. The intern will assist with research that goes beyond national policy debates to offer a more complete picture of the way Americans live, work, and socialize. This internship will involve background research, questionnaire design, editing, data visualization, and data analysis. Research topics change every semester, with a broad focus on politics, religion, and social connection.
The ideal candidate will have an educational background in political science, statistics, or a related field; strong research abilities; some data experience; curiosity; and a self-directed work ethic. Experience with Stata, SPSS Statistics, or another statistical software and experience and interest in social media (specifically X) are preferred.
The start dates for the fall program are September 9 and September 16. While the AEI Internship Program and all related programming will take place in-person in Washington, DC this fall, virtual interns may be accepted on a case by case basis. Please include your preferred start date and note your in-person/virtual preference in your cover letter. Please note that a cover letter and writing sample are both required, in order for your application to be considered complete.
About AEI Internships
AEI internships offer a unique opportunity for undergraduates, graduate students, and recent graduates to gain experience in research, writing, business, and communications at one of the nation’s leading think tanks. Competitive candidates will generally have a 3.4 GPA or higher from a top-ranking college or university. The AEI internship program runs 12 weeks. Please see the internship program home page for updates about the program.