Research Fellow, Legal Data Lab

The University of Virginia School of Law seeks a Research Fellow to support the Legal Data Lab within the Arthur J. Morris Law Library. The Legal Data Lab supports empirical legal scholarship at the University of Virginia School of Law. One of the first labs of its kind, the Lab uses data science solutions to help patrons better understand and explain complex legal phenomena.

The Law School is consistently recognized as one of the top law schools in the country, and the Law Library is critical to its mission and culture. The Arthur J. Morris Law Library supports the Law School’s mission of excellence in teaching, research, and publication. The environment at the Law School is both active and supportive, with a strong sense of collegiality among students, faculty, and staff and a commitment to excellence and service.

The Legal Data Lab’s Research Fellow will be an integral part of the Law Library’s Legal Data Lab, supporting empirical legal studies projects undertaken by Law School faculty, administrators, and students. The position offers an opportunity to develop and maintain expertise in new research methodologies and techniques This position is ideal for individuals who have recently completed a relevant undergraduate degree and are looking to strengthen their quantitative research experience, and who have a strong interest in pursuing a post graduate education.

This is a one-year position with a start date of August 2024 or sooner, depending on the candidate’s availability. The position is renewable for an additional two years at the discretion of the Law School. The successful candidate will have a passion for applying data-driven research to foster a greater understanding of legal and social issues.

Responsibilities:

• Collect, clean, and synthesize data sets.
• Help ensure data quality and research reproducibility.
• Help produce data visualizations.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree.
• Familiarity with one or more programming languages (e.g. Python, R, Stata).
• Familiarity with social scientific research methods.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and attention to detail.
• Excellent communication skills to convey complex findings to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree with substantial coursework in data science, statistics, quantitative/computational social science or a related field, OR a Bachelor's degree with at least two years of related work experience.
• Familiarity with the life cycle of data-intensive research projects.
• Familiarity with the U.S. legal system or a strong motivation to learn.
• Experience supporting data-intensive research projects.
• Experience with ETL processes using SQL.
• Experience working with or developing APIs.
• Knowledge of web design and HTML.
• Experience supporting data-intensive projects that have led to publication in peer-reviewed journals or conference presentations.

This is a full-time University Managerial and Professional staff position and offers compensation of $60,000 plus benefits. This position requires most work to be performed in person at the Law School, with the opportunity to perform a limited amount of work remotely in accordance with Law School policy. This position will not sponsor applicants needing visa sponsorship. 

The School of Law is in Charlottesville, Virginia, a college town setting in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Charlottesville area offers many opportunities for outdoor recreation, an active arts and music scene, and access to historical sites where researchers continue to explore the region’s past. Charlottesville is often ranked among the best places to live in the United States.

To Apply: Apply online at http://jobs.virginia.edu/us/en/job/R0061934/Research-Fellow-Legal-Data-Lab-School-of-Law.