National Security Analyst - Strategic Analysis & Integration

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory•Laurel, MD

1d•Onsite

About The Position

NSAD is seeking experienced analysts with strong technical and analytic capabilities who can bring structure, rigor, and creativity to difficult problems at the intersection of adversary behavior, emerging technology, operational concepts, policy, and strategy. In NSAD, we conduct independent, adversary-informed analysis that helps sharpen national security decision-making by defining what choices are available, what risks they carry, and what trade-offs they create. Our work is methodologically grounded and mission focused. We work across JHU/APL as integrators, helping to understand and articulate how technology fits into a larger operational, strategic, and policy context. We are increasingly emphasizing data-driven analysis, intelligence-informed assessments, and the use of advanced analytic technologies, including Generative AI, to improve the speed, repeatability, transparency, and insightfulness of our work. We are looking for analysts who can deliver high-quality sponsor work today, while helping to modernize and innovate on the methods, workflows, and tools our analysts will need tomorrow. The strongest candidates will combine analytic depth with breadth of perspective. We do not expect every analyst to be an expert in every method; we expect experienced analysts to understand the strengths and limitations of different approaches. We expect they are intellectually curious, comfortable with ambiguity, proactive in identifying and solving problems, and willing to learn new methods and technologies. Strong candidates will also be engaged and collaborative analysts who take ownership, identify what needs to be done, and work constructively across teams and disciplines to move complex efforts forward. We value analysts who can challenge ideas and assumptions while engaging colleagues with respect, intellectual humility, and a shared commitment to producing the best analysis.

Requirements

Have a Master’s degree or higher in operations research, statistics, applied mathematics, the physical or social sciences, engineering, economics, or another analytically rigorous field.
Have at least seven years of relevant experience supporting national security analysis or comparable mission-focused analytic work along with demonstrated analytic judgement, e.g., distinguishing important uncertainties from those on the periphery of the core issue; the ability to determine the elements of an ambiguous problem that matter most; the ability to quickly execute and adapt the approach as needed.
Have demonstrated experience leading or substantially contributing to analyses of complex, unstructured problems.
Have experience selecting and applying analytic methods appropriate to real-world problems, drawing from quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, or model-based approaches.
Can develop defensible analytic frameworks, identify assumptions and uncertainties, define measures and data needs, interpret evidence, and communicate findings clearly to decision makers.
Have experience working with data to support analysis, such as collecting, cleaning, structuring, analyzing, visualizing, or interpreting operational, intelligence, technical, survey, experimental, or other mission-relevant data.
Have familiarity with AI-enabled tools, including generative AI, automation, data science, modeling, and/or other advanced analytic technologies, and can think critically about their appropriate use in analytic work.
Possess strong analytic curiosity, creativity, critical thinking, and intellectual humility.
Can operate independently, manage multiple tasks, and lead analytic efforts from problem framing through sponsor delivery.
Have strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills, including the ability to brief complex findings to technical and non-technical audiences.
Can build trusted relationships with government sponsors and internal collaborators, including subject matter experts from technical, operational, intelligence, and policy communities.
Are able to obtain an Interim Secret security clearance by your start date and can ultimately obtain a Top Secret security clearance. If selected, you will be subject to a government security clearance investigation and must meet the requirements for access to classified information. Eligibility requirements include U.S. citizenship.

Nice To Haves

Have a Doctoral degree in operations research, statistics, applied mathematics, the physical or social sciences, engineering, economics, or another analytically rigorous field.
Have experience developing structured datasets, data pipelines, model-based assessments, dashboards, and/or reusable workflows.
Have experience applying AI, GenAI, machine learning, natural language processing, automation, or advanced data tools to improve analytic deliverables.
Have operational, intelligence, acquisition, policy, strategy, or military planning experience relevant to national security decision-making.
Have experience with adversary-informed analysis, net assessment, technology forecasting, force structure analysis, or supply chain analysis.
Have experience leading multidisciplinary teams or mentoring analysts in rigorous analytic methods.
Possess an active Secret clearance or higher.

Responsibilities

Lead and contribute to rigorous, data-driven national security analyses, looking across adversary capabilities and behavior, emerging technologies, operational concepts, policy implications, force structure, readiness, institutional capacity, and mission risk.
Serve as an analytic integrator across technical, operational, intelligence, policy, and strategic perspectives, translating complex evidence into clear findings for sponsors and senior decision makers.
Develop innovative analytic approaches to complex, ambiguous problems by framing key questions, identifying assumptions, defining measures of effectiveness, determining data requirements, evaluating uncertainty, and communicating defensible findings.
Incorporate advanced analytic tools and methods into your work, including quantitative analysis, qualitative research, modeling and simulation, social science methodologies, and wargaming and tabletop exercises.
Help build reusable analytic frameworks, datasets, baselines, and workflows that allow our analysts to assess evolving adversary capabilities, blue force options, technology impacts, and mission risks over time.
Be an engaged member of multidisciplinary teams—to include technical experts and specialists—to identify what needs to be done, take ownership, seek out expertise and perspectives different from your own, and help colleagues solve problems and move work forward.
Partner with JHU/APL program managers to shape work and engage directly with government sponsors and senior decision makers to understand their challenges, shape analytic questions, and present compelling results.
Translate analytic results into clear insights for sponsor decisions and effectively communicate complex findings through briefings, reports, visualizations, and other products tailored to senior-leader audiences.
Mentor junior analysts by helping them structure problems, apply sound methodology, evaluate evidence, communicate clearly, and develop as independent analytic contributors.