CAA Qualitative Research Assistant

Contract Role Overview

CAA is seeking two contractors, ideally graduate students, to act as research assistants to conduct qualitative analysis of interview and focus group data for the local resident voting research project. This research is part of a larger project that examines how granting non-citizen immigrants the right to vote in local elections affects immigrant civic inclusion and belonging.

This is an opportunity to work on a team of academic and community-based researchers. The team is led by Helen Ho (CAA) and Ron Hayduk (SFSU). The research assistant would also work closely with Megan Dias (Cornell), Janelle Wong (UMD) and Kathleen Coll (USFCA). This opportunity is ideal for a graduate student seeking experience with qualitative and policy-relevant research.

Research assistants will be responsible for coding and analyzing interviews and focus groups with immigrant participants from a diverse range of cultural and ethnic backgrounds. The research assistants will also contribute to the creation of a qualitative codebook and write summaries of the analysis.

The research assistants will report to Research Fellow, Megan Dias and are expected to work 10-15 hours a week from 5/15/25 to 9/14/25. Research assistants will be expected to meet virtually with the research team, up to 1-2 hours per week, but the rest of the work can be completed during flexible work hours. The research assistants will use their own computer to access research files while following research data security procedures to protect sensitive information.

About CAA and AACRE

Chinese for Affirmative Action was founded in 1969 to protect the civil and political rights of Chinese Americans and to advance multiracial democracy in the United States. Today, CAA is a progressive voice in and on behalf of the broader Asian American and Pacific Islander community. We advocate for systemic change that protects immigrant rights, promotes language diversity, and remedies racial and social injustice.

In 2014, CAA helped to launch the Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality (AACRE) network that focuses on long-term movement building, capacity infrastructure, and leadership support for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders committed to social justice. Including CAA, there are currently 11 partnering member groups with unique strengths. Fiscal sponsorship, administrative, and operational support is provided centrally for all of these groups so they can focus on their core programs.

More recently, CAA, along with AAPI Equity Alliance and the San Francisco State University Asian American Studies Department, launched the Stop AAPI Hate coalition to document and respond to incidents of hate at the local, state, and national levels. The mission of Stop AAPI Hate is to advance equity, justice, and power by dismantling systemic racism and building a multiracial movement to end anti-Asian American and Pacific Islander hate. This is an exciting period of growth and impact for Stop AAPI Hate. Due to the extraordinary demand and support for our work, we are poised to deepen and expand our reach and engagement throughout the country.

At the grassroots level, our community building work nurtures the ability of immigrants to participate fully in civic life. These activities include direct services, leadership development, and civic engagement with limited-English proficient newcomers and immigrants on issues that impact our community. At the systemic level, CAA leads advocacy, communications, and movement building work to improve public policy and shape public discourse. We produce community-based research, publish policy analyses and recommendations, influence opinion through media, organize to engage elected and government officials, and nurture a range of progressive coalitions.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience conducting qualitative analysis either independently or under the supervision of a senior researcher, such as creating or following interview coding guidelines
• Coursework in qualitative research methods at the graduate level
• Experience using qualitative data management and analysis software (e.g., NVivo, Dedoose, ATLAS ti)
• Experience complying with Institutional Research Board (IRB) and research security protocols
• Strong commitment to social justice, equity, and civic engagement
• Familiarity with relevant topics, such as immigrant rights, voting rights, civic engagement, policy/program implementation, and/or take-up of government programs by marginalized communities
• Excellent writing skills
• Detail-oriented, self-motivated, good organizational skills, and able to meet deadlines
• Proven ability to work in, and contribute to, a collaborative research environment
• Open to direction, learning, and feedback
• Respectful and communicative with colleagues
• Experience working with immigrants and community organizations (preferred)
• Spanish or Chinese proficiency is a plus

To Apply

Please apply on Gusto at bit.ly/qra0125 with your cover letter, resume, and writing sample.

Deadline: First review deadline February 14, 2025. Second review deadline February 28, 2025. Applications reviewed on a rolling basis after.

If you are invited for an interview, you will be asked to provide the contact information for two references.

CAA shares fiscal sponsorship with Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality (AACRE). Contractors hired by CAA will be contractors of AACRE.

AACRE is dedicated to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and equitable work environment where everyone is valued and discrimination has no place. We are committed to serving the rich diversity of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and strongly encourage women, trans and gender expansive individuals, people of color, immigrants, LGBTQIA+ individuals, people with conviction or arrest records, and those living with disabilities to apply.