General Summary:
The Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts
Boston and partners at the Disability Policy Consortium are looking for members
of the disability community to work in a paid research internship as part of a
research team studying employment for people with disabilities. The goal of the
project is to study the Progressive Employment model, an emerging evidence-based
practice that helps job seekers with disabilities to obtain competitive
integrated employment. The ICI has a five-year research grant to explore the
impact of the Progressive Employment model.
Progressive Employment (PE) is a dual-customer service delivery model that uses
work-based learning strategies (activities in real workplaces) to introduce job
seekers to businesses to meet their collective needs. Progressive Employment
rapidly engages job seekers in work settings to aid informed choice as they
develop their career goals. The underlying premise is that “everyone is ready
for something.” This model, developed in 2009 by the Vermont Division of
Vocational Rehabilitation, offers businesses a variety of options for meeting,
interacting with, and trying out a new pool of potential job applicants.
The Research Internship is designed to provide hands-on experience in
qualitative research and scholarly dissemination. The primary goal of the
internship is to enhance interns’ skills in qualitative research methods and
processes while supporting the development and submission of a manuscript to a
peer-reviewed journal. Interns will work closely with research staff and
contribute to various stages of the research process, depending on project
needs, internship timing, and the availability of research activities.
Examples of Duties:
ICI and partners will provide learning opportunities for interns to gain
experience with:
Working on federally-funded research grants
Qualitative research methods and analysis.
Developing skills in literature review, data synthesis, and academic writing.
Increasing understanding of the research publication process.
Contributed to the preparation and submission of a manuscript for publication
in a peer-reviewed journal.
Interns will:
1. Assist with outreach and communication efforts to research participants.
2. Support the planning and implementation of qualitative research activities.
3. Conduct qualitative data collection activities, such as interviews or focus
groups, community conversations as appropriate.
4. Participate in qualitative data coding, analysis, and interpretation.
5. Conduct literature reviews and desk reviews to inform research objectives
and manuscript development.
6. Summarize and synthesize research findings from academic and gray literature
sources.
7. Contribute to the drafting, editing, and revision of sections of research
manuscripts, reports, and related dissemination products.
8. Collaborate with research team members and attend project meetings as
appropriate.
9. Maintain human subjects certification (CITI) and follow ethical principles
in conducting interviews, focus groups and observations.
Note: Specific responsibilities may vary based on the timing of the internship,
project phase, and the availability of research activities.
Qualifications:
Identify as a person with lived experience of any type of disability
Strong knowledge of and experience in using a computer. Including using:
email, online calendars, the Zoom video conference platform, search engines
to gather information, Microsoft applications such as Outlook, Word,
PowerPoint, Excel, and Teams.
Willingness to develop new skills. Skills may include, learning new computer
applications, co-facilitating meetings, writing in plain language, doing
accessibility checks, creating alt tags, etc.
Strong analytical and critical thinking skills, with the ability to review,
interpret, and synthesize information from multiple sources.
Willingness to learn about the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, the
Rehabilitation Act and other federal legislation impacting individuals with
disabilities
Strong interest in contributing to scholarly research and gaining experience
with the process of preparing and submitting manuscripts to peer-reviewed
journals.
Preferred Qualifications
Familiarity with Microsoft Office applications, including Word, PowerPoint,
and Excel.
Interest in learning qualitative research methods, data analysis techniques,
and research software such as Atlas.ti.
Interest in conducting literature reviews and synthesizing findings from
published research.
Interest in academic writing, knowledge translation, and research
dissemination activities.
Graduate students, or undergraduate students with a demonstrated interest in
research and scholarly writing, are strongly encouraged to apply. This
position is particularly well suited for individuals seeking to develop a
scholarly presence and gain experience contributing to peer-reviewed research
publications.
SUPERVISION:
Interns will be supervised by ICI staff and will also have access to a mentor
from the Disability Policy Consortium on this project. We do not provide job
coaches or support people. You can bring your own support person or job coach if
you need one.
Tell us if you have any other accommodation needs. Let us know if you need
anything to make the internship more accessible. We will provide accommodations,
such as assistive technology or sign language interpreters.
OTHER INFORMATION:
The ICI is hiring up to two intern positions. Each intern will be paid to work
for up to 400 hours during a one-year period (e.g., 10-week full time paid
internships @ 40 hours/week; or 20-week part-time paid internship @ 20
hours/week, etc.). The hourly rate is commensurate with experience. Hiring range
$25.00 – 31.00/hour.
ICI will provide the interns with a laptop and necessary software to use for
work on this project. Remote candidates are required to have access to
high-speed internet and a quiet work environment.
UMass Boston requires background checks for all employees. The background
checks will be conducted upon hire.
We will provide disability related accommodations in the interview process. Let
us know if you will need an accommodation for the interview.
Application Instructions:
Please apply online with your resume, cover letter and list of three
references.
This is a non-union exempt position.
UMass Boston expects to pay within an approximate range between $25.00 hr and
$31.00 hr for this position.
The specific pay for this position will be determined by the University based on
the consideration of all relevant factors when and if it decides to extend an
offer of employment.
ALL OFFICIAL SALARY OFFERS MUST BE APPROVED BY HUMAN RESOURCES.
UMass Boston is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As
part of this commitment, we will ensure that persons with disabilities are
provided reasonable accommodations for the hiring process. If reasonable
accommodation is needed, please contact HR@umb.edu [HRDirect@umb.edu] or
617-287-5150.