Research Analyst 1/2 (PCN 20-7208)

State of Alaska; Juneau (AK); Hybrid; USD 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work schedule

Job summary

The Department of Corrections, Division of Administration and Support in Juneau, Alaska, is seeking a Research Analyst 1/2 to design and conduct research on the correctional population. You will collect data from multiple sources, build datasets, and contribute to state reporting.

You will query T-SQL databases and develop analyses in Python using Jupyter notebooks, Quarto, and VS Code, while applying modern methods such as machine learning and generative AI to enhance reporting.

Qualifications

• Experience planning and conducting research projects.
• Ability to collect, clean, and analyze data from multiple sources.
• Familiarity with reporting to internal and external stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Design, plan, and conduct research projects on Alaska’s correctional population; collect data from primary and secondary sources and build datasets.
• Query relational databases (T-SQL) and develop analyses in Python using Jupyter notebooks, Quarto, and VS Code.
• Apply modern methods, including machine learning, generative AI, and agentic engineering, to modernize and expand the Department’s research and reporting.
• Support the integrity of the Alaska Corrections Offender Management System (ACOMS) by running quality-control reports and documenting discrepancies.
• Produce recurring products and respond to data requests, including the annual Offender Profile and agency performance measures.

Skills

Data analysis

Research methods

Attention to detail

Communication skills

Tools

T-SQL

Python

Jupyter notebooks

Quarto

VS Code

Job description

Department of Corrections, Division of Administration and Support

The Department of Corrections, Division of Administration and Support, is recruiting for a Research Analyst 1/2 position located in Juneau, Alaska.

Watch Alaska DOC's video here: DOC 2026_45 sec

What you will be doing:

• Design, plan, and conduct research projects on Alaska’s correctional population—collecting data from primary and secondary sources and building the datasets behind the Department’s reporting.
• Query relational databases (T-SQL) and develop analyses in Python—using Jupyter notebooks, Quarto, and VS Code—to combine, clean, analyze, and report data drawn from multiple systems.
• Apply modern methods, including machine learning, generative AI, and agentic engineering, to help modernize and expand the Department’s research and reporting.
• Support the integrity of the Alaska Corrections Offender Management System (ACOMS)—running quality-control reports, documenting discrepancies, and helping correct data so the Department’s numbers can be trusted.
• Produce recurring products and respond to data requests—including the annual Offender Profile, agency performance measures, and queries from internal and external partners such as the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

Our mission, values, and culture:

The mission of the Alaska Department of Corrections is to promote public safety; we provide secure confinement, access to reformative programs, and offender management planning that promotes successful community reentry. The Research & Records section is the empirical backbone of that mission—our analysis, statistics, and reporting give Department leaders and policymakers the accurate information they need to make sound decisions and measure what works. We value precision, intellectual honesty, and getting the numbers right.

Benefits of joining our team:

This is a great place to start or grow a data-analysis career—a flexibly staffed Research Analyst 1/2 role where you can enter at the level that fits your experience and advance as you develop. You will join a small, tight-knit four-person Research & Records team and work across the full data lifecycle, from collecting and cleaning data to statistical analysis and reporting for state and federal audiences, with a modern toolset and exposure to machine learning and AI. Your work makes a meaningful, direct contribution to public safety and to how the Department understands its own performance. The State of Alaska offers a competitive benefits package, including health coverage, both defined-benefit and defined-contribution retirement options, and generous personal leave. This position is hybrid-eligible, offering schedule flexibility while keeping you connected to the team in Juneau.

The working environment you can expect:

This position is based at the Department of Corrections office in the scenic Douglas Island Building, with ample parking and a short walk to Savikko Park, Sandy Beach, and the Treadwell Mine Historic Trail, and is eligible for a hybrid schedule consistent with Department telework policy. The work is collaborative and deadline-driven, with shifting priorities, daily interaction with staff and outside agencies, and regular handling of confidential offender data.

Who we are looking for:

We are interested in candidates who possess some or all of the following position specific competencies:

• Reasoning: Identifies rules, principles, or relationships that explain facts, data, or other information; analyzes information and makes correct inferences or draws accurate conclusions.
• Quality Assurance: Knowledge of the principles, methods, and tools of quality assurance and quality control used to ensure a product fulfills functional requirements and standards.
• Attention to Detail: Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.

Competency Description

This job class uses competency based minimum qualifications. Please ensure your application (through work history, volunteer experience (duties summary), training, education, licenses, certifications, etc.) supports how you have gained the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors (competencies) and that you possess the minimum required competencies for the job class.

Research Analyst 1

Any combination of education and/or experience that provides the applicant with competencies in

• Analysis and Assessment: Uses information technology in accessing, collecting, analyzing, maintaining, and disseminating data and information.
• Problem Solving: Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.

equivalent to those typically gained by:

Education and/or experience which included research or statistical analysis.

Special Note:

“Competencies” means a combination of interrelated knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors that enable a person to act effectively in a job or situation.

“Typically gained by” means the prevalent, usual method of gaining the competencies expected for entry into the job.

“Training” and “education” in this guidance are synonyms for the process of acquiring knowledge and skills through instruction. It includes instruction through formal and informal methods (such as classroom, online, self-study, and on-the-job), from accredited and unaccredited sources, and long-duration (such as a post-secondary degree) and short-duration (such as a seminar) programs.

Research Analyst 2

Any combination of education and/or experience that provides the applicant with competencies in

• Analysis and Assessment: Uses information technology in accessing, collecting, analyzing, maintaining, and disseminating data and information.
• Problem Solving: Identifies problems; determines accuracy and relevance of information; uses sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives, and to make recommendations.
• Technical Competence: Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or extensive on-the-job experience to perform one's job; works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to the job; advises others on technical issues.

equivalent to those typically gained by:

Education and/or progressively responsible experience which included investigative research or statistical analysis.

Special Note:

“Competencies” means a combination of interrelated knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors that enable a person to act effectively in a job or situation.

“Typically gained by” means the prevalent, usual method of gaining the competencies expected for entry into the job.

“Training” and “education” in this guidance are synonyms for the process of acquiring knowledge and skills through instruction. It includes instruction through formal and informal methods (such as classroom, online, self-study, and on-the-job), from accredited and unaccredited sources, and long-duration (such as a post-secondary degree) and short-duration (such as a seminar) programs.

“Progressively responsible” means indicating growth and/or advancement in complexity, difficulty, or level of responsibility.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS

If selected for an interview, the applicant must provide the following:

• Educational Transcripts, if using education to meet the minimum qualifications
• Last three performance evaluations (or letters of reference/recommendation from the three most recent supervisors if there were no evaluations within the last five years.

FLEXIBLY STAFFED

This position is flexibly staffed. The level of the job offer will be based on the selected candidate’s credibly possessed and proven competencies. If hired at the lower level, you will be promoted to the higher level after completing the training plan and demonstrating competency in the work.

EDUCATION

If post-secondary education is required to meet the minimum qualifications, you must fill in the Education section of the application. If you have not obtained a degree, please indicate the number of units completed. Copies of transcripts are required to verify educational credentials if used to meet the minimum qualifications for a position. Transcripts can be attached at the time of application or provided at the time of interview.

LEGAL EMPLOYMENT

The State’s online recruitment system, Workplace Alaska, requires applicants to certify that they have a legal right to accept employment in the United States. It is the responsibility of the employee to maintain the appropriate documentation to accept or continue legal employment. The State of Alaska does not function in the role as an employer sponsor.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR FOREIGN EDUCATION

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the minimum qualifications listed above. If utilizing this education, you must show that the education credentials have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and that such education has been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs; or an accredited U.S. post-secondary institution reports the other institution as one whose transcript is given full value, or full value is given in subject areas applicable to the curricula at the post-secondary institution. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying.

WORK EXPERIENCE

If using work experience not already documented in your application, also provide the employer name, your job title, dates of employment, and whether full-or part-time. Applications will be reviewed to determine if the responses are supported and minimum qualifications are clearly met. If they are not, the applicant may not advance to the interview and selection phase of the recruitment.

CRIMINAL HISTORY CHECKS/APSIN/ACOMS

Please be aware – this position requires the use of the Alaska Public Safety Information Network (APSIN). A security clearance issued by the Department of Public Safety (DPS) is necessary to use APSIN. DPS will deny security clearance for any applicant who has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor in this state or another jurisdiction, or who may be a fugitive from justice. Additionally, security clearance will be withdrawn if DPS discovers that material information was falsified or omitted at the time of the initial application for security clearance.

FINGERPRINT NOTICE

All Department of Corrections employees are required to be fingerprinted. The successful candidate must pass a criminal history check.

EEO STATEMENT

The State of Alaska complies with Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Individuals with disabilities, who require accommodation, auxiliary aides or services, or alternative communication formats, please call 1-800-587-0430 or 465-4095 in Juneau or [phone] (TTY) or correspond with the Division of Personnel & Labor Relations at: P. O. Box 110201, Juneau, AK 99811-0201. The State of Alaska is an equal-opportunity employer.

WORKPLACE ALASKA APPLICATION QUESTIONS & ASSISTANCE

Questions regarding application submission or system operation errors should be directed to the Workplace Alaska hotline at 1-800-587-0430 (toll-free) or [phone] if you are in the Juneau area. Requests for information may also be emailed to [e-mail].

For applicant password assistance, please visit: https://www.governmentjobs.com/OnlineApplication/User/ResetPassword

Jesse Slone
Research Analyst 4
907-465-3313
[e-mail]