Data Scientist, Advancement

Position Title:

Data Scientist, Advancement

Position Type:

Full time

Scheduled Weekly Hours:

40

Categories:

Staff Exempt

Job Summary:

The Data Scientist, Advancement plays a key role in supporting the strategic goals of University Advancement by transforming data into actionable insights that guide decision-making across strategic insight that drives alumni engagement and philanthropic growth. By applying statistical analysis, machine learning, and data science techniques, this position uncovers trends, predicts behavior, and helps Advancement teams focus their efforts where they will have the greatest impact. This role partners with Advancement leadership, information services, and frontline teams to proactively deliver analytical projects, dashboards, predictive models, and data visualizations that optimize fundraising, alumni and parent engagement strategies, measure campaign performance, and identify new opportunities for philanthropic growth. This full-time, 12-month benefits-eligible position is based in Lewisburg, PA and will have the option for a hybrid work location; this is not a fully remote role.

Job Duties:

The ideal candidate thrives on turning ambiguous questions into actionable insights, using data, curiosity, and creativity to explore new ways to understand and engage audiences.

• Data Analysis & Insight Generation (25%):  Analyze constituent and revenue data to surface trends, gaps, and opportunities that inform planning, prospect pipeline development, and fundraising performance.  Manage both reactive and proactive projects.  Translate complex analytic findings into clear, compelling insights and communicate findings through visualizations and narratives that make complex results understandable for non-technical stakeholders. Deliver strategic insights that help prioritize resources and maximize philanthropic impact across campaign phases.  Establish feedback loops to evaluate the downstream impact of insights and analytical projects.

• Drive Predictive and Behavioral Modeling (25%): Design and implement statistical models (e.g., regression, clustering, survival analysis, ARIMA) to understand donor behavior and forecast giving potential. Conduct cohort analyses, A/B testing, and segmentation to evaluate campaign effectiveness and recommend improvements. Develop and refine models that assess donor capacity, likelihood to give, engagement scoring, and pipeline readiness. Use these models to identify prospects, prioritize outreach, personalize stewardship, and support campaign planning and resource allocation.

• Data Wrangling, Integration and Automation (20%): Source and prepare structured and unstructured data from various systems (CRM, digital engagement platforms, survey tools) for analysis. Automate recurring analytics processes to enable scalable, real-time decision-making.

• Enhance Fundraising Effectiveness (10%):  Serves a strategic thought partner with Strategic Philanthropy and Marketing, Strategy and Outreach teams to apply predictive models and performance analyses that guide donor outreach, portfolio management, and solicitation timing. Help teams focus on prospects with the greatest likelihood and capacity to give to drive future revenue generation.

• Support Targeted Alumni Engagement (10%):  Proactively analyze behavioral, demographic, and historical data to identify high-potential alumni audiences and uncover untapped engagement opportunities or gaps in current strategy. Serve as a strategic thought partner to engagement staff, co-developing data-informed, personalized outreach approaches that drive deeper connection, increase participation, and support long-term donor conversion. Evaluate the effectiveness of engagement efforts and recommend ongoing refinements based on measurable impact. Provide data-driven recommendations to shape personalized engagement strategies that increase connection, participation, and long-term donor conversion.

• Drive Strategic Collaboration Across Advancement (10%): Collaborate with colleagues across advancement to integrate data insights into goal setting, progress tracking, and program design. Serve as an internal thought partner to help build a culture of data-informed philanthropy and engagement. Facilitate cross-functional planning grounded in shared data understanding.

This position (and all positions in our division) requires the occasional evening and weekend work to support university events including Homecoming, Family Weekend, Reunion Weekend, and other events. We do ask staff to mark their calendars in advance for these events. This position may occasionally coordinate on