Job Summary

Reporting to the Senior Director of Institutional Research and Strategic Analytics, the Institutional Research Analyst III supports a wide variety of research projects that includes both simple and sophisticated data gathering, analysis, and reporting, which contributes to meeting institutional, federal, and accreditation requirements. The position provides comprehensive data management, programming, and analytical support to Institutional Research and Strategic Analytics (IRSA), Academic Affairs, and when appropriate other campus constituents related to institutional or system priorities, mandated or required information, and accreditation. This role will perform complex research studies, and other requests that fosters better understanding of institutional efficacy. This position also coordinates the compilation and submission of institutional data to internal external organizations. The incumbent manages projects largely independently and will help coordinate and cross train IRSA staff, which include other research technicians, research analyst/programmers, and student assistants. The position is responsible for maintaining the accuracy, validity, reliability, and usability of data delivered to stakeholders including supporting data literacy campus-wide.

Key Responsibilities

• Report out institutional data to internal and external organizations related to institutional or system priorities, mandated or required information, and accreditation requirements
• Inventory and manage data and research requests, and identify the appropriate group, support, and resources needed to ensure the requirements for the request will be addressed
• Develop and/or provide expertise related to appropriate theoretical frameworks, research designs, and methodological approaches to facilitate producing research studies that present timely, relevant, and consequential findings and insights
• Consult and provide expertise related to available and appropriate data to meet requirements for requests as well as provide guidance to ensure findings and results are interpreted and described accurately
• Design and conduct relevant data analyses by applying appropriate research methodologies and statistical techniques related to the requirements outlined for each project
• Perform quality checks on own work and the work of other contributors, when applicable.
• Maintain and build relevant dashboards that are comprehensive and accessible for consumers to use
• Apply various data visualization techniques to develop user-friendly reports, dashboards, and presentations to communicate key trends related to various topics that highlight strategic initiatives at the institutional and system levels including assigned projects
• Develop systematic reporting capabilities, documentation, and web-based sites related to assigned projects to support operational continuity and departmental productivity
• Develop a detailed understanding of and subject matter expertise related to institutional data, databases, and platforms (e.g., SAMI Gateway, Spartan Connect, Campus Data Warehouse) to perform analyses related to evaluation and research studies
• Write queries, integrate data sources, and develop business logic to build data sets for use to conduct various analyses create reports and dashboards
• Manage and clean large datasets for optimizing reporting and efficiency
• Provide appropriate explanations of information resources based on operational definitions from relevant data dictionaries that are in use at SJSU and the CSU
• Identify, investigate, and work to resolve data quality issues with relevant data being used across IRSA and other units IRSA interfaces with to ensure accurate reporting of information
• Perform technical tasks and provide technical support on data collection, aggregation, analytics, and assigned research and evaluation activities
• Provide documentation, user support, and access to data sources as required
• Develop, maintain, and enhance relevant databases by serving as a strategic business partner to cultivate and integrate data from a range of sources
• Cross-train colleagues and university stakeholders related to appropriate information, knowledge, skills, and competencies about managing, using, and reporting data
• Facilitate formative and summative evaluation processes for IRSA using institutional and programmatic data through the application of mixed methodologies to analyze effectiveness and impact for planning and decision-making purposes
• Prepare informative reports and presentations of professional quality to facilitate the interpretation and utilization of data by a diverse audience of institutional stakeholders

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Ability to communicate with constituents in a professional and respectful manner
• Understand and able to apply appropriate survey, evaluation, and research designs and methodologies to measure institutional, programmatic, and key initiatives’ effectiveness and/or impact
• Knowledge and ability to use data information systems (e.g., PeopleSoft & Campus Data Warehouse) to build dashboards (e.g., Tableau, Power BI)
• Project management skills, which include but are not limited to clear and concise communication; organization, time, and task management abilities; planning and scheduling; technical and research knowledge, and; adept in relationship and team building
• Ability to manage and oversee multiple programs’ operational needs, coordinate logistics to ensure timely delivery of work products, and provide recommendations for areas of improvement
• Ability to apply analytic mindset and use appropriate techniques to evaluate the effectiveness of policies, programs, and practices
• Proficient writing and presentation skills including the ability to communicate technical details to nontechnical audiences
• Ability to identify important insights from various data and program sources and suggest implications for university policy and practices
• Ability to support academic leaders on their enrollment, program, assessment, and scheduling management practices
• Understands academic policies and programs to support planning, accreditation, and assessment to help evaluate its effectiveness
• Ability to write original and edit existing queries using SQL
• Ability to automate certain data tasks through the use of syntax and data logic (e.g., in SQL)
• Ability to apply general statistical techniques, such as tests of difference and association (e.g., t-tests, ANOVA, correlation, regression)
• General familiarity with descriptive and inferential statistical methods and similar techniques
• General knowledge to perform descriptive statistics and ability to learn and apply statistical models in software packages such as IBM SPSS, SAS, Stata, and/or R using command syntax
• Ability to learn advanced and quasi-experimental evaluation techniques such as regression discontinuity and propensity score adjustments
• Ability to learn and implement predictive and scenario modeling in collaboration with university stakeholders and share the results
• Data management skills and the ability to generate, query, merge, transform, and restructure data sets and account for missing, duplicated, and unmatched data using SQL and similar techniques
• Ability to learn and apply best practices related to statistical models in enrollment planning (e.g., regression, moving average)
• Ability to test and refine numerical projection techniques in tools such as Excel, SPSS, and/or R using command syntax
• Ability to explain statistical and quantitative issues to a variety of audiences
• Ability to produce tables and graphical analyses in software systems such as Tableau and Microsoft Excel
• Knowledge of data presentation conventions and techniques
• Ability to document work for future reference and troubleshooting

Required Qualifications

• Equivalent to graduation from a four-year college or university. Additional qualifying professional experience may be substituted for the required education on a year-for-year basis.
• Three years of progressively responsible technical research or statistical experience including or supplemented by one year in the interpretation and graphic presentation of data. Graduate study in the social sciences, economics, mathematics, statistics, public or business administration or engineering may be substituted for the required experience on a year-for-year basis.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in education, social sciences, economics, computer science, data analytics, mathematics, statistics, public or business administration, computer or data science, or other related fields
• Three or more years of experience in a similar function
• Experience in higher education research, coding/programming, project management, enrollment management and/or scheduling concepts and procedures
• Experience running statistical models and predictions (such as linear and binary regressions) on higher education data sets
• Experience working directly in Institutional Research/Institutional Effectiveness, Assessment, and/or Data Analytics/Business Intelligence offices

Compensation

Classification: Research Technician III
Anticipated Hiring Range: $6,347/month - $6,651/month
CSU Salary Range: $5,279/month - $9,552/month

San José State University offers employees a comprehensive benefits package typically worth 30-35% of your base salary. For more information on programs available, please see the Employee Benefits Summary.

Application Procedure

Click Apply Now to complete the SJSU Online Employment Application and attach the following documents:

• Resume
• Letter of Interest

All applicants must apply within the specified application period: April 15, 2025 through May 4, 2025. This position is open until filled; however, applications received after screening has begun will be considered at the discretion of the university.

Contact Information

University Personnel
jobs@sjsu.edu
408-924-2252

CSU Vaccination Policy

The CSU strongly recommends that all individuals who access any in-person program or activity (on- or off-campus) operated or controlled by the University follow COVID-19 vaccine recommendations adopted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) applicable to their age, medical condition, and other relevant indications and comply with other safety measures established by each campus. The system wide policy can be found at https://calstate.policystat.com/policy/9779821/latest/ and questions may be sent to jobs@sjsu.edu.

Additional Information

Satisfactory completion of a background check (including a criminal records check) is required for employment. SJSU will issue a contingent offer of employment to the selected candidate, which may be rescinded if the background check reveals disqualifying information, and/or it is discovered that the candidate knowingly withheld or falsified information. Failure to satisfactorily complete the background check may affect the continued employment of a current CSU employee who was offered the position on a contingent basis.

The standard background check includes: criminal check, employment and education verification. Depending on the position, a motor vehicle and/or credit check may be required. All background checks are conducted through the university's third party vendor, Accurate Background. Some positions may also require fingerprinting. SJSU will pay all costs associated with this procedure. Evidence of required degree(s) or certification(s) will be required at time of hire.

SJSU IS NOT A SPONSORING AGENCY FOR STAFF OR MANAGEMENT POSITIONS. (e.g. H1-B VISAS)

All San José State University employees are considered mandated reporters under the California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and are required to comply with the requirements set forth in CSU Executive Order 1083 as a condition of employment. Incumbent is also required to promptly report any knowledge of a possible Title IX related incident to the Title IX Office or report any discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation to the Office of Equal Opportunity.

Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act and Campus Housing Fire Safety Notification: 

Pursuant to the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, the Annual Security Report (ASR) is also now available for viewing at https://www.sjsu.edu/clery/docs/SJSU-Annual-Security-Report.pdf. The ASR contains the current security and safety-related policy statements, emergency preparedness and evacuation information, crime prevention and Sexual Assault prevention information, and information about drug and alcohol prevention programming. The ASR also contains statistics of Clery crimes for San José State University locations for the three most recent calendar years. A paper copy of the ASR is available upon request by contacting the Office of the Clery Director by phone at 408-924-1501 or by email at clerycompliance@sjsu.edu.

Pursuant to the Higher Education Opportunity Act, the Annual Fire Safety Report (AFSR) is also available for viewing at https://www.sjsu.edu/clery/docs/SJSU-Annual-Fire-Safety-Report.pdf. The purpose of this report is to disclose statistics for fires that occurred within SJSU on-campus housing facilities for the three most recent calendar years, and to distribute fire safety policies and procedures intended to promote safety on Campus. A paper copy of the AFSR is available upon request by contacting the Housing Office by phone at 408-795-5600 or by email at uhs-frontdesk@sjsu.edu.

Campus Security Authority - In accordance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act) and CSU systemwide policy, this position is subject to ongoing review for designation as a Campus Security Authority. Individuals that are designated as Campus Security Authorities are required to immediately report Clery incidents to the institution and complete Clery Act training as determined by the university Clery Director.

Equal Employment Statement

San José State University is an equal opportunity employer. The university prohibits discrimination based on age, ancestry, caste, color, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military status, nationality, race, religion, religious creed, sex, sexual orientation, sex stereotype, and veteran status. This policy applies to all San José State University students, faculty, and staff, as well as university programs and activities. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and certain other federal and state laws, prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex in all education programs and activities operated by the university (both on and off campus). Reasonable accommodation is made for applicants with disabilities who self-disclose. San José State University employees are considered mandated reporters under the California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and are required to comply with the requirements set forth in CSU Executive Order 1083 as a condition of employment.