Senior Research Analyst

CommonLit is a nonprofit education technology organization dedicated to ensuring that all students, especially students in Title I schools, graduate with the reading, writing, communication, and problem-solving skills they need to be successful in college and beyond. We envision a world where all students get the opportunity to have a world class education. We operate an online reading program for grades 3-12 that is used by teachers in over 90,000 American schools.

CommonLit’s Evaluation Research team investigates the effectiveness of CommonLit through quasi-experimental, correlational, and mixed-methods studies. The Evaluation Research team is currently working on a large-scale, quasi-experimental study funded by an Education Innovation and Research grant from the Department of Education. Through the 2026-2027 school year, the team is collaborating with external researchers from Columbia University to examine the impact of CommonLit 360 on middle school students’ state ELA test scores.

The Senior Research Analyst will work closely with the Director of Evaluation Research to conduct research on the effectiveness of CommonLit for students and teachers. The role will involve working on large-scale and small-scale evaluations of CommonLit’s efficacy as well as collaborating across various teams, such as Data Science, UX Research, Marketing, Fundraising, Sales, District Success, and Product. This person will ideally join the team in June or July 2025.

Predictors of success in this role include:

• Thinking as a researcher and providing thought partnership
• Staying flexible and being open to feedback
• Having strong organizational skills and being detail-oriented
• Being able to collaborate with internal and external teams
• Recognizing one’s own worldview and appreciating worldviews other than one’s own
• Possessing a passion for equity and strong learning outcomes for all students

Apply by: Wednesday, April 9, 2025 at 5pm ET

Responsibilities

• Contribute to the development of a strong roadmap of evaluation research on student, teacher, and school level outcomes
• Conduct quantitative research (i.e., develop research questions, manage data requests, clean/wrangle data, analyze data, and write up results)
• Conduct qualitative research (i.e., develop interview protocols, conduct interviews with educators, analyze responses, and write up findings)
• Communicate research findings via presentations for staff and educators, blog posts for general audiences, and reports for technical audiences
• Represent CommonLit at meetings with external collaborators, such as third-party evaluators, school district partners, research funders, etc.
• Serve as an expert on research methods, research design, and research communication for teams that use evaluation research findings in their work (e.g., Marketing, Fundraising, Sales, District Success, Product, etc.)

Qualifications

Required

• Master’s degree in social or behavioral sciences, education, economics, or related fields
• Experience with both quantitative and qualitative research methods and analyses
• Strong quantitative analysis skills with the ability to wrangle disparate sources of data
• Experience with R statistical software, data visualization software, and general office software
• Strong research communication skills, including the ability to translate research to different kinds of audiences
• Strong project management skills, with ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously in a fast-paced and constantly evolving environment
• Desire to advocate for new ideas, receive feedback, and be a thought partner with the Director of Evaluation Research

Preferred

• PhD in social or behavioral sciences, education, economics, or related fields
• Experience supporting education research grants
• Experience supporting a large-scale study
• Experience with survey design
• Experience with Github is helpful, but not required

At CommonLit, we are committed to fostering a supportive and inclusive company culture that values work-life balance and adapts to life’s changes. We offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support our employees’ health, well-being, and financial security:

• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• HSA and FSA Plans, including Medical FSA, Limited FSA, and Dependent Care FSA options
• Company-sponsored basic life insurance, with additional options for supplemental life insurance
• Legal insurance
• 401(k) retirement plan with a 4% safe harbor employer match
• Access to exclusive discounts, including pet insurance, hotel booking discounts, and more
• Pre-tax commuter benefits for employees in the D.C. metropolitan area
• Remote work support, including a home office set-up stipend

Generous time off, including:

• 16 paid holidays annually
• Paid time off accruals and sick leave
• Paid family leave, including caregiver leave, medical leave, and 12 weeks of paid parental leave
• 2 floating holidays
• Volunteer and school visitation leave
• Jury duty leave
• Bereavement and compassionate leave
• Flexible work options

As a remote-first organization, CommonLit has team members in nearly 30 states and Washington, D.C. We strive to create a collaborative and engaging workplace through various connection opportunities:

• Monthly remote activities, such as dumpling-making, yoga, and virtual escape rooms
• Monthly "CoffeeLit" sessions for connecting with colleagues
• Learning and development opportunities for teams and individuals