What are the responsibilities and job description for the Graduate Research Intern (Chicago/Hybrid) position at Feeding America?
Work. Serve. Thrive.
Imagine a place where your talent can make a meaningful difference in peoples' lives. Working at Feeding America is a uniquely rewarding experience in which our employees work together as vital parts of a much larger mission. We are innovative, mission-focused, diverse, collaborative, values-driven and focused on results.
We are a national, nonprofit organization. We are the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States. Through a network of 200 food banks, 21 statewide food bank associations, and over 60,000 partner agencies, food pantries and meal programs, we helped provide 6.6 billion meals to tens of millions of people in need last year. Feeding America also supports programs that prevent food waste and improve food security among the people we serve; brings attention to the social and systemic barriers that contribute to food insecurity in our nation; and advocates for legislation that protects people from going hungry.
The paid internship program is designed to give you an opportunity to complement your formal education with career-related experience and impact. The internship provides stimulating and substantive work experience, coupled with an opportunity to expand your knowledge and understanding of Feeding America.
We are a national, nonprofit organization. We are the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States. Through a network of 200 food banks, 21 statewide food bank associations, and over 60,000 partner agencies, food pantries and meal programs, we helped provide 6.6 billion meals to tens of millions of people in need last year. Feeding America also supports programs that prevent food waste and improve food security among the people we serve; brings attention to the social and systemic barriers that contribute to food insecurity in our nation; and advocates for legislation that protects people from going hungry.
The paid internship program is designed to give you an opportunity to complement your formal education with career-related experience and impact. The internship provides stimulating and substantive work experience, coupled with an opportunity to expand your knowledge and understanding of Feeding America.
The Opportunity
Feeding America is seeking an intern for the 2025-2026 school year to support the organization’s research and evaluation activities as a part of the Research & Innovation department. This paid internship will contribute to innovative, rigorous research and dissemination activities that support understanding the experience of hunger and what solutions work to address food insecurity.
The internship is 20-24 hours per week during the 2025-2026 school year.
Interns are expected to be student learners and not expected to be experts on research or food insecurity. Interns will support research projects and be mentored on various skills and competencies as they gradually take on more responsibilities. Over the course of the internship, we ask students to bring enthusiasm and curiosity to the position as they expand their knowledge, skillsets, and abilities.
Compensation
This graduate research internship is non-exempt and pays at a rate of $18/hour for current graduate students.
This graduate research internship is non-exempt and pays at a rate of $18/hour for current graduate students.
Responsibilities:
- Apply principles of equal opportunity throughout all research and evaluation initiatives.
- Support program evaluation projects for the network of 200 partner food banks.
- Provide project-based support to key Feeding America research teams to help gather information about and better serve households who experience food insecurity (e.g., our annual Map the Meal Gap study).
- Collaborate with Research team members to provide technical assistance to other Feeding America teams/departments, including Innovation, Communications, Government Relations, Member Grants, and Strategic Capacity Development.
- Collect, analyze and interpret secondary data, including quality control checks and data reviews, as well as support the creation of data visualizations (using Tableau) and infographics.
- Conduct literature reviews and support the development of analytic briefs and reports while ensuring the integrity of research used by the organization.
- Learn and further develop various analytic software applications, applied research design, survey methodology, and measurement as well as learning about food insecurity and potential solutions.
- Complete administrative and miscellaneous tasks as assigned.
Required qualifications:
- Graduate student working towards a Master’s or doctoral degree in data science or the social sciences, including (but not limited to) public health, social work, public policy, or public administration.
- Must be able to commute to the Feeding America National Organization’s downtown office at least an average of once per week.
- Strong analytical, oral, and written communication skills.
- Knowledge of access and utilization of scholarly research.
- Ability to fulfill duties and responsibilities with a limited amount of direct supervision (after appropriate training) and to complete assigned projects in a timely manner.
- Ability to perform work in a multi-task environment, prioritizing needs for efficient and effective service.
- Ability to think creatively and strategically as part of a team and within broad coalitions.
- Skilled in Microsoft Office applications required, especially Excel.
- Committed to organizational mission of ending hunger.
Preferred qualifications:
- Experience working in or studying social services, public policy, or administration.
- Experience using statistical software (e.g., R, STATA, SPSS, or Excel) to conduct data analysis preferred.
- Experience in survey research and survey software (e.g., Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey) preferred.
- Experience working with data visualization tools such as Tableau and infographics preferred.
- Second year graduate student preferred, or first year graduate student with additional professional experience.
Applications received by March 14th, 2025 will be reviewed and given priority. Please submit your application on or before this date.
Feeding America’s goal is to attract, develop, retain, and promote a talented diverse workforce where all employees feel a sense of belonging and contribute to a culture that values differences, ideas, and experiences. We intentionally seek out diverse perspectives and skills on our teams, knowing that it makes us stronger as an organization and better equipped to serve our neighbors in need. We encourage all individuals, including those from historically under-represented communities and individuals with lived experience of hunger, to apply.
Feeding America participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S. If E-Verify cannot confirm that you are authorized to work, this employer is required to give you written instructions and an opportunity to contact Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or Social Security Administration (SSA) so you can begin to resolve the issue before the employer can take any action against you, including terminating your employment. Employers can only use E-Verify once you have accepted a job offer and completed the Form I-9.
Salary : $18
