Research Scientist, Demography and Survey Sciences

The Demography and Survey Science team's mission is to improve the way we make decisions and measure impact both within and outside of Meta. We collect and analyze rich survey and behavioral datasets to understand new challenges, solve problems, and shape decisions. We are looking for quantitative social scientists with experience answering complex research questions to join us in this effort.

Our interdisciplinary team includes those with expertise in statistical inference, survey methodology, causal inference and econometrics, regression modeling, exploratory data analysis, and mathematical demography, among other areas. In this role, you’ll own research end-to-end. This means you’ll navigate trade-offs while designing projects, proposing appropriate methodologies, analyzing data, and communicating results to broad audiences in order to drive impactful decisions.

Applicants may include social scientists, applied statisticians, or other applied researchers with expertise in quantitative research methods, experience working with large datasets and relational databases, and experience with survey methodology (e.g., bias correction, sampling). We are looking for candidates who can demonstrate methodological rigor, demonstrated communication skills, and experience making research design choices that balance competing tradeoffs effectively.Research Scientist, Demography and Survey Sciences Responsibilities

• Help shape the research agenda and drive research projects from end-to-end
• Collaborate with product teams to define relevant questions about survey methodology and quantitative measurement
• Deploy appropriate quantitative methodologies to answer those questions
• Develop novel approaches where traditional methods won’t do
• Provide teams with usable measurement strategies and methodologies to meet their product and business decision needs
• Deliver insights and recommendations clearly to relevant audiences

Minimum Qualifications

• 4+ years of post-graduation working experience
• Experience communicating analyses and results to any audience
• Master’s or Ph.D. in the social sciences (e.g., Economics, Political Science, Sociology, Psychology, Communication), or in a quantitative field (e.g., Statistics, Informatics, Econometrics) with experience answering social questions
• Knowledge in data manipulation and analysis software and programming languages (R/Stata, SQL/Hive)
• Knowledge in quantitative and survey research methodologies (e.g., bias correction for surveys, survey sampling and design, regression modeling, causal inference with a survey outcome, shrinkage and regularization, designing and analyzing longitudinal panel surveys, behavioral data analysis)
• Demonstrated experience in designing original research to address complex questions

Preferred Qualifications

• Expertise with weighting/bias correction for surveys and survey sampling
• Expertise with time series analysis and/or repeated cross-sectional analysis
• Experience with qualitative methods such as focus groups and in-depth interviewing
• Familiarity with R and SQL for statistical analysis
• Expertise in survey questionnaire and survey metric development
• Experience analyzing both cross-sectional and longitudinal survey data
• Experience working with online survey panel vendors (e.g., YouGov, Ipsos, Kantar, SSRS)
• Experience translating often abstract stakeholder requests into actionable research plans
• Experience translating survey analysis into actionable insights
• Familiarity with other aspects of survey methodology such as bias correction/weighting and survey sampling (but does not need to be an expert)
• Generally solid quantitative research skills such as: linear regression, maximum likelihood estimation (e.g., logistic regression, probit), causal inference
• Experience with measurement error and psychometric methods (e.g., factor analysis, structural equation modeling, Item Response Theory modeling (IRT))

For those who live in or expect to work from California if hired for this position, please click here for additional information. About Meta Meta builds technologies that help people connect, find communities, and grow businesses. When Facebook launched in 2004, it changed the way people connect. Apps like Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp further empowered billions around the world. Now, Meta is moving beyond 2