Spring Lowe Employment

Updated 1/24/2023

The Lowe Institute of Political Economy sponsors quantitative research in economics and adjacent fields of social science including political science, history, and psychology. We match students and faculty to work together on year-long projects. Research methodologies typically combine conceptual approaches learned in the classroom with data analysis and econometric testing. Students working at the Institute learn a variety of software packages including STATA, R, Excel, and Tableau. Research sponsored by the Institute is regularly published in top academic journals, is presented at academic conferences and in public forums, informs newspaper articles written by affiliated faculty, and is quoted in local and national newspapers.

In the spring 2023 semester, there are openings on economic journalists and we are beginning to recruit for the fall 2023 Claremont McKenna College Fed Challenge team (check back soon for updates). The Lowe Institute plans to hire economic journalists through an application and interview process. Students and staff will have a table outside of Collins on Wednesday, February 1 from noon until 1:00 pm to answer any questions you may have about the role and the application process.

Economic Journalists [EJ]

EJs will work in a team with the Director Assistant Director to develop content for the Lowe Institute’s blog and social media accounts. Content will be defined by a characteristic Lowe brand of data-driven economic analysis. EJs will need to be entrepreneurial in helping to generate ideas, pursue and analyze data, and write content. A weekly mid-day meeting with the entire group is mandatory. There will be deadlines. This role is a good fit for those interested in public intellectualism, journalism, and the intersection of academia and the public. This is a young and expanding program and EJs will be expected to provide energy and ideas in helping expand the program. This is likely to be an exciting but challenging mixture of entrepreneurialism while taking editorial direction and an interesting mix of data analysis and writing.

[We expect to hire 4 Economic Journalists]

All Student Analyst roles at the Lowe Institute of Political Economy:

  • Duration: Spring Semester. Except those selected for leadership positions on the forecast team, Lowe Student Analysts must reapply each year. New opportunities may arise mid-year, but this is not guaranteed.
  • Positions are open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors from the 5Cs.
  • The Lowe Institute is an equal opportunity employer with no preference as to gender, ethnicity, sexuality, or political views. Applications will be judged solely on the expected ability of the applicant to perform the job as defined below.
  • For AY 22-23, Lowe Student Analysts will be paid as follows: Incoming: $16.00/hour; Returning: $17.00/hour; Student Managers: $18.00/hour
  • Skill with software and programming languages useful for data organization and analysis (e.g. Excel, Stata, R, Python) is highly valued but not strictly required. Completion of Econ 50 is expected. Completion of Econ 120 is extremely useful.
  • Entrepreneurial spirit and work ethic are critical. Each role involves pursuing open-ended tasks for which the successful path is not obvious. Lowe RAs must have the initiative and optimism to run down the best available leads without guarantee of success and must have the determination to continue to do so until the goal is met.
  • Lowe EJs must also understand when to ask for help and when to keep at it. That means being capable of working on open-ended tasks and finding answers for yourself, yet asking for help rather than continuing to waste time hitting your head against a wall should the task prove unexpectedly difficult.
  • Lowe EJs must be responsible about meeting deadlines and communicating effectively with fellow team members and supervising faculty and staff.

Here is the link to submit your application through Handshake Job #7439523. The submission deadline is Wednesday, February 8, 2023. Your Handshake application should include:

1) resume, 2) cover letter, 3) unofficial transcript, 4) 1-2-page analytical writing sample. Please make sure ALL attached documents to your application contain your first and last name.

Please contact the Lowe Institute Program Coordinator or EJ Student Managers if you have any questions about the application and interview process.