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Researcher

Employer
USAJobs
Location
Washington, D.C
Closing date
May 18, 2021
Duties

Summary

The Researcher will maintain USCIRF's FoRB Victims List and RPOC project, conduct outreach with relevant organizations, monitor religious freedom conditions in specified areas, monitor U.S. foreign policy, develop recommendations for the U.S. Government, provide support to regional analysts focused on human rights and thematic issues relevant to USCIRF's mission

This is not an entry-level position and requires relevant or related work experience.
Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

1. Maintain and Expand USCIRF's Prisoner Projects
  • Implement and serve as the primary contact for FoRB Victims List and RPOC projects, including coordinating with Policy Analysts and external stakeholders on information specific to prisoners of conscience to ensure accuracy and consistency;
  • Conduct research on victims of religious freedom violations and performing data entry of submissions and other information as needed to maintain the FoRB Victims List and RPOC projects.
  • Draft, edit and maintain materials related to the projects, including the database itself, accompanying documents, and external communications, and contribute to the strategic vision of these projects.
  • Develop and maintain relationships with relevant organizations to contribute information to these projects and expand partnerships related to these projects.
2. Monitoring and Research - assist in monitoring religious freedom conditions in assigned countries and support the work of USCIRF's Research and Policy team with research, writing, data collection and analysis tasks. This includes:
  • Collecting, analyzing and documenting information related to freedom of religion or belief, including: following events affecting freedom of religion or belief across the region and in countries of concern;
  • gathering information and maintaining relations with U.S. and foreign government agencies, NGOs, religious groups, and academics; and monitoring international media and State Department reports/statements;
  • Updating the Policy Recommendations Tracking system to track implementation of USCIRF's policy recommendations in assigned countries; and
  • Serving as the primary point of contact for the assigned countries/regions.

3. Reporting - assist in reporting on religious freedom condition in assigned countries to advance USCIRF's mission and strategic objectives. This includes:
  • Drafting Annual Report chapters for assigned countries, special reports and other research publications ensuring they communicate policy priorities and recommendations and religious freedom conditions effectively and persuasively;
  • Reviewing and editing press releases, op-eds, website posts, and social media posts relating to assigned countries to ensure credibility and accuracy;
  • Drafting Congressional testimony, briefing memos, and talking points for Commissioners and senior staff on assigned countries; and
  • Working closely with the supervisor to identify and justify news-worthy events relevant to USCIRF's mission to be shared on USCIRF's website and social media.
4. Outreach - participate in research and policy related outreach initiatives and events to advance policy recommendations and raise awareness for relevant international religious freedom (IRF) conditions. This includes:
  • Attending and assisting in organizing public events, such as the Annual Report rollout, panel discussions/square tables, conferences, working groups, webinars and briefings related to IRF issues to share findings and gain insights on specific research and policy topics;
  • Preparing research-related materials for events, meetings, hearings, and travel in support of USCIRF's mandate;
  • Developing new and strengthening current relationships with relevant stakeholders inside and outside the U.S. government, including the White House, State Department and other Executive Branch agencies, as well as with foreign officials, domestic and foreign audiences, NGOs, human rights groups and religious organizations;
  • Maintaining USCIRF's database of relevant policy contacts, including the contacts in the U.S. government, NGOs, academia, and other relevant stakeholders focused on freedom of religion or belief and related human rights; and
  • Supporting Commissioners and the Executive Director in their efforts to advance USCIRF policy recommendations and to raise awareness of IRF conditions globally.
5. Travel - in accordance with USCIRF's travel protocol, plan, prepare and participate in domestic and overseas policy-related events and trips, including Commissioners' delegations, to gather firsthand information, develop relationships with relevant stakeholders and to raise the profile of USCIRF. This includes:
  • Assisting in travel arrangements; and
  • Coordinating pre-trip and post-trip messaging with the Director of Outreach and Policy.
6. Other
  • Maintaining collaborative relationships with others within and across departments, displaying positive attitude and professional and collegial demeanor; and
  • Communicating professionally and respectfully both internally and externally, including with Commissioners, Congressional offices, Executive branch officials, the media, and other key stakeholders;
  • Holds oneself and others accountable for assigned responsibilities, including administrative policies and procedures to ensure compliance with laws and regulations. Takes responsibility for completing administrative tasks within established deadlines; and
  • Other duties as assigned.


Travel Required

Occasional travel - Domestic and international travel is required for this position.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
None

Requirements

Conditions of Employment


Desired Qualifications
  • Fluency or demonstrated proficiency in Farsi or Arabic is a plus but not required.


Qualifications

  • Must be a U.S. citizen;
  • Possess an advanced degree in a relevant field to the position requirements (candidates with an undergraduate degree only will not be considered);
  • At least two (2) years' substantive experience as demonstrated by a sustained record of accomplished, analytical writing, and other professional achievements that are related or relevant to USCIRF's work;
  • Strong research skills, particularly those applied in a work setting (i.e. not only university coursework);
  • Experience or interest in data entry and maintaining a database;
  • Ability to proactively develop, synthesize, and articulate effective and actionable policy recommendations;
  • Ability to multi-task and work in a fast-paced setting, defining and meeting deadlines;
  • Ability to synthesize information from various sources;
  • Ability to work independently and as part of a team;
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills;
  • Attention to detail, excellent organizational skills, and collegial demeanor; and
  • Proven experience using Microsoft Office applications such as Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook.


Education

Bachelor's Degree preferred.

Additional information

Benefits

USCIRF offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation, sick leave, ten Federal holidays, retirement, life insurance, and medical benefits. Please visit https://www.opm.gov/ for more information on Federal employee benefits.

Other Information

Selective Service. If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify at the time of appointment that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under Selective Service law.

Reasonable Accommodation. USCIRF provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please contact USCIRF at (202) 523-3240. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

Equal Employment Opportunity. The United States Government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

This job is excepted from the competitive civil service. Applicants will be evaluated and deemed either eligible or ineligible based on the (1) completeness of the submission of the required materials, (2) relevance and quality of experience and education, and (3) desired qualifications described above.

Pursuant to section 204(c) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, as amended, USCIRF staff members are hired "on the basis of professional and nonpartisan qualifications."

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Secret

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

  • cover letter;
  • resume;
  • three references; and
  • writing sample (no more than five pages).


If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

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