Postdoctoral Associate

Virginia Tech • Alexandria, VA

1d • Onsite

About The Position

The Virginia Center for Housing Research (VCHR) at Virginia Tech seeks a Postdoctoral Associate to support and advance applied research focused on housing affordability, housing markets, housing policy, and housing program development. Working collaboratively with VCHR faculty, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and other stakeholders, the successful candidate will contribute to research initiatives that inform housing-related decision-making at the local, regional, and state levels. The position will involve designing and executing applied housing research projects, including collecting, managing, and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data related to housing needs, market conditions, housing affordability, and policy interventions. Key responsibilities include conducting comprehensive literature reviews, evaluating housing policies and programs, and developing evidence-based analyses to support housing studies, affordable housing initiatives, and economic assessments.

Requirements

• Doctorate degree in urban planning or equivalent with dissertation on a housing topic.
• PhD must be awarded no more than four years prior to the effective date of appointment with a minimum of one year eligibility remaining.
• Background in data analytics and science, housing policies and programs, especially data and methods applicable in housing research, and experience conducting applied housing research.
• Demonstrated experience in data compilation and analysis relevant to local housing programs and policies
• Demonstrated experience in translating housing data and research findings into clear written, visual, and oral communication for technical and non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrated experience in qualitative research methods and analysis, including interviews, focus groups, and content analysis.

Nice To Haves

• Experience conducting local and regional housing needs assessments and market analyses.
• Familiarity with inclusionary zoning (affordable dwelling unit) incentive programs and economic analysis required to support program development.
• Experience in applied housing research with the ability to perform and improve the efficiency/effectiveness/efficacy of analysis and methods.
• Experience with data organization and cleaning, including programming skills required to scrape data from documents and websites.
• Skills and experience with Python, R, and Excel.
• Experience with and understanding of AI tools.

Responsibilities

• Designing and executing applied housing research projects
• Collecting, managing, and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data related to housing needs, market conditions, housing affordability, and policy interventions
• Conducting comprehensive literature reviews
• Evaluating housing policies and programs
• Developing evidence-based analyses to support housing studies, affordable housing initiatives, and economic assessments

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree