Research Program Associate, AI Safety

Cambridge Boston Alignment Initiative•Cambridge, MA

3d•$100,000 - $125,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Cambridge Boston Alignment Initiative (CBAI) is a nonprofit research organization focused on ensuring a safe and beneficial transition to advanced AI systems through research and education. CBAI produces original research and accelerates AI safety research via fellowship programs. Following a successful 2025 launch, CBAI is scaling rapidly in 2026, expanding fellowship cycles, cohort size, and team. The Research Program Associate will work closely with Research Managers, mentors, and program leadership to design and improve structures that support fellows' research. This program-building role involves developing systems for mentor matching, research goal scoping and tracking, progress assessment, and unblocking fellows. The role shapes the environment for fellow-mentor relationships without direct day-to-day fellow management. The position is split between Program Design & Development (0.6 FTE) and Fellow & Mentor Experience (0.4 FTE).

Requirements

Understanding of good research support, gained from experience in academia, policy, consulting, or a research organization.
Systems thinking: ability to identify friction points and design simple, effective solutions.
Track record of building useful processes.
Excellent communication skills: clear writing, concise explanations, and constructive feedback.
Proactive problem-solving and direct communication when necessary.
Organization and conscientiousness: ability to keep complex projects on track, follow through reliably, and maintain clear documentation.
Receptiveness to feedback and ability to improve approach based on learning.
Interpersonal excellence: strong collaboration and stakeholder management skills.
Mission-motivated: strong alignment with CBAI's mission, familiarity with AGI safety and catastrophic AI risks.
Curiosity and adaptability: genuine interest in AI safety research, seeking tools and approaches to improve fellowship effectiveness.
Meaningful experience designing or improving programs, initiatives, or organizational systems.
U.S. work authorization required (OPT accepted).

Nice To Haves

Experience in research-adjacent environments (labs, think tanks, or similar).
Previous involvement in AI safety, field-building, or research acceleration programs.
Experience in research program coordination or academic administration.
Familiarity with how research fellowships or grant programs operate.

Responsibilities

Design and iterate on systems, including the fellow selection process and program deliverables.
Identify high-potential outreach channels and methods, and own outreach campaigns for future iterations.
Develop structured program evaluation frameworks to assess fellow progress and program effectiveness across cohorts.
Identify and implement structural improvements between fellowship cycles, using feedback from fellows, mentors, and research managers.
Support the design and execution of fellowship events, such as speaker series and poster days, in coordination with program leadership.
Design and manage the mentor onboarding experience, ensuring clear expectations, resources, and a smooth entry for mentors.
Develop feedback mechanisms to surface issues early and create strong communication loops between fellows, mentors, and program leadership.
Support research managers in navigating complex fellow or mentor situations requiring program-level input.
Design supplementary programming to strengthen the fellowship's intellectual environment (e.g., reading groups, lightning talk series, workshop sessions).