RRI - CREST Senior Research Assistant II

Portland State University, College of Urban and Public Affairs; Portland (OR); On-site; USD 62,000 - 84,000; Full time

Job summary

Portland State University seeks a Senior Research Assistant II within the Regional Research Institute for Human Services to support diversified grants and contracts. The role involves survey design, data collection, and collaboration with partners across agencies and communities.

The position focuses on behavioral health research, program evaluation, and tool development, with supervision from a Principal Investigator on multiple grants. A strong team approach is essential.

Qualifications

• Master’s Degree in social work, psychology, sociology, or related human services field.
• Experience with survey research methodology and implementation.
• Knowledge of social service systems, especially substance abuse and mental health.
• Ability to collaborate with diverse, culturally-specific community agencies.

Responsibilities

• Conduct surveys of varying scope on funded research projects.
• Evaluate community-based behavioral healthcare and outcomes.
• Develop measurement tools and data collection instruments.
• Build and maintain relationships with community partners and stakeholders.

Skills

MS Word

Excel

Access

SPSS

Atlas.ti

Qualtrics

Education

Master’s Degree in social work, psychology, sociology, or related human services field

Tools

MS Word

Excel

Access

SPSS

Atlas.ti

Qualtrics

Job description

Position Announcement

Position Details

Proposed Start Date 11/16/2026 Rank K2 - Senior Research Asst II Working Title RRI - CREST Senior Research Assistant II Position Number D91958 Representation AU - AAUP Faculty Type Fixed Term Research/Grant Fixed Term End Date: 09/30/2028 Position FTE Variable 0.5 - 1.0 FTE, initially 1.0 FTE Term of Service 12 month

Position Summary

Brief Description of PSU/School/Dept Portland State University is Oregon’s most affordable public research university, located in the heart of one of America’s most dynamic cities. Our mission to "let knowledge serve the city" reflects our dedication to turning ideas into action - in Portland and around the world. The city is our campus, giving students unmatched access to career connections, a vibrant cultural scene and hands-on learning experiences with hundreds of community partners.

More than 20,000 students from all backgrounds bring diverse perspectives to our classrooms and campus life, from the tree-lined Park Blocks to the bustling Urban Plaza and state-of-the-art science labs. We are proud of our world-class faculty, groundbreaking research and international reputation for excellence in sustainability, community engagement and innovation.

The Regional Research Institute (RRI) in the School of Social Work conducts innovative research and program evaluation that addresses critical community issues. We work at the intersection of research, practice, training, and policy with local, state, regional, national, and international agencies and partners. The quality of our community-based participatory action work has gained us a national reputation.

Position Summary

This position supports RRI projects that are funded through federal grants, state agencies, city governments, and community partners. This position is within the Regional Research Institute for Human Services in the School of Social Work, and is supervised by the Principal Investigator on those grants and contracts.

The Senior Research Assistant 2 will work on various research and evaluation projects that change over time, primarily focused on conducting small to large scale surveys, evaluating community-based behavioral healthcare, developing measurement tools, and developing relationships with community partners. This is a grants and contracts funded position and will include working both on teams, with other researchers and independently.

We are recruiting to fill two open positions.

Qualifications

• Master’s Degree in social work, psychology, sociology, or related human services field
• Expertise with MS Word, Excel, and Access; SPSS; Atlas.ti; Qualtrics
• Knowledge and experience with the social service system, particularly substance abuse and mental health treatment
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively on a team and with diverse, culturally-specific community agencies and partners
• Experience implementing community-based, research and evaluation projects
• Demonstrated expertise with survey research methodology and implementation

Preferred Qualifications

• Two years post-MSW in order to provide field placement supervision to social work students
• Familiarity with southwestern Oregon behavioral health services
• Familiarity with City of Portland government and experience working with the service areas and individual bureaus/offices
• Experience working on research and evaluation projects through SAMHSA federal grants, Oregon Health Authority contracts, and City of Portland contracts
• Expertise with door-to-door data collection in small, rural Oregon communities
• Knowledge of arts education across the six Portland school districts
• Experience writing federal grant proposals
• Experience managing participant incentives
• Ability to balance tasks across multiple projects at once

Key Cultural Competencies

• Create an environment that acknowledges, encourages, and celebrates differences.
• Function and communicate effectively and respectfully within the context of varying beliefs, behaviors, orientations, identities, and cultural backgrounds.
• Seek opportunities to gain experience working and collaborating in diverse, multicultural, and inclusive settings with a willingness to change for continual improvement.
• Adhere to all of PSU’s policies including the policies on Prohibited Discrimination & Harassment and the Professional Standards of Conduct.

Environmental Stewardship

Contributes to a culture of environmental stewardship, practices resource conservation, and actively works toward achieving long-term sustainability goals.

Professional Standards of Conduct

At Portland State University, all employees are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner which maintains a safe, respectful, and productive environment for faculty, students, administrators, and staff. It is the responsibility of every member of the Portland State University community to conduct themselves in accordance with our PSU Professional Standards of Conduct which are available at https://www.pdx.edu/human-resources/professional-standards-conduct-policy.

Total Compensation Range & Benefits Statement

Salary is dependent on several factors, and new employees will typically start around the Q1 level to allow for later growth within the salary band. PSU has a structured process for determining starting compensation, taking into account years of related experience, applicable skills, knowledge and abilities, market parity, and internal equity.

The starting annual salary for this position will be $72,636 (at 1.0 FTE), but may be negotiated above this rate dependent upon the factors above, the budget of the hiring department, and approval from HR.

An excellent benefits package includes 95% premium paid healthcare; a generous retirement and vacation package; and reduced tuition rates for employee, spouse or dependent at any of the Oregon University System schools.

Please visit our total compensation calculator to see the full value of our benefits package.

Supplemental Questions

• * Please state the field in which you received your Master's degree. (Open Ended Question)
• * How did you first find out about this position?
• PSU website
• Indeed
• Chronicle of Higher Education
• Higher Ed Jobs
• HERCJobs
• Referral
• Professional Listserv- please specify in comment box in the next question
• Professional Journal- please specify in comment box in the next question
• Other- please specify in comment box in the next question
• If you selected Other, please describe. (Open Ended Question)

Applicant Documents

Required Documents

• Resume
• Cover Letter

Optional Documents