ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION AND THE OPPORTUNITY

EdTrust seeks a Higher Ed Research Intern to join a staff committed to fulfilling our mission of closing opportunity gaps that disproportionately affect students of color and students from low-income backgrounds. 

The Intern will support the data management and analysis for the team’s data tools, including creating a streamlined process for downloading, cleaning, merging, and appending postsecondary data to create the metrics contained in EdTrust products such as College Results, Segregation Forever, The Affordability Gap, and the Public Tableau. The work will primarily focus on using publicly available data to create compelling narratives about the current state of access, accountability, affordability, and success for low-income students and students of color in postsecondary education. This work sits at the intersection of quantitative research, data infrastructure, and public-facing tools, with a focus on making education and workforce data more accessible and actionable.

EdTrust is committed to advancing policies and practices to dismantle the racial and economic barriers embedded in the U.S. education system. Through our research and advocacy, EdTrust improves equity in education from preschool through college, engages diverse communities dedicated to equity and justice, and increases political and public will to build an education system where all students will thrive. 

This role, available September 2026, is ideally based in our Washington, D.C office but other locations could be considered. Upon hire, the Higher Ed Research Intern must report to the EdTrust National office within three (3) days of hire for employment verification. This role is part-time for less than 6 months (exact schedule and dates are negotiable). The Intern reports to the Director of Higher Ed Research and will serve as a member of the EdTrust National Higher Ed Research Team.  

ABOUT THE ROLE

The major responsibilities for this role include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Mine data from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), the College Scorecard, U.S. Census, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and other sources to produce datasets that help identify institutions and states that are successfully enrolling and graduating underserved populations, or making significant progress in those areas
• Analyze national datasets to identify barriers to access and success for students of color and low-income students in higher education
• Assist with the redesign, improvement, and updating of metrics hosted on College Results, an interactive webtool
• Help with the development and analysis of equity metrics that assess how successful institutions and states are at increasing access, accountability, affordability, and success for students of color and low-income students
• Collect literature and draft research to inform team projects and policy recommendations
• Assist with the development of tools and processes to aid postsecondary improvement efforts
• Translate data and research into accessible, public-facing products, including dashboards, webtools, briefs, and content for digital and social media platforms
• Contribute to building, maintaining, or improving data pipelines, reproducible workflows, or backend processes that support EdTrust’s data tools and analyses

Projects may focus on areas such as college affordability, credentials of value, student success and outcomes, and improving transparency in education and workforce data systems.

IDEAL SKILLS AND CHARACTERISTICS

• Shared belief in EdTrust’s mission and a commitment to improving educational equity with a focus on racial equity
• Dedication in contributing to and maintaining an equitable working environment
• Strong critical thinking skills
• Excellent attention to detail
• Ability to do analytical work with data autonomously
• Strong verbal and written communication skills 
• Teamwork skills and an eagerness for collaboration
• Problem-solving ability
• Willingness to receive and act upon, as well as provide, constructive feedback
• Continuous learner
• Experience or interest in using digital platforms (including social media) to communicate data insights to broader audiences
• Interest in applying data science, computer science, or engineering skills to advance equity and improve access to public data

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

The ideal candidate will possess the following qualifications and experience: 

• Enrolled in a degree program with a focus on education, public policy, statistics, research methodologies, or a related field
• Experience in a research role, including quantitative data analysis
• Experience with statistical software (R, SQL, Python, STATA, SPSS) and/or data visualization (Power BI, Tableau, R, gplot, etc.)
• Familiarity with higher education issues, preferred
• Experience working with cloud database systems (e.g. AWS), large datasets, APIs, or data pipelines is a plus
• We especially welcome candidates with backgrounds in data science, engineering, or software development who are interested in applying their technical skills to advance equity in education and workforce outcomes

COMPENSATION

The pay for this position ranges from $19 - $30/hr commensurate with education and experience. We do not negotiate on intern pay in order to maintain equity within our intern pay scale; pay rates for internships are primarily determined based on level of education. Sick leave is accrued in this role.

TO APPLY:

EdTrust is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes candidates from diverse backgrounds.  

Qualified candidates please apply via ADP, including submitting an updated resume and completing the short answer questions.