This position is in IDA’s Operational Evaluation Division (OED), located in Alexandria, VA, just outside Washington, D.C. OED collaborates with civilian government agencies to independently test and evaluate military technology to provide our warfighters with safe, effective, and usable military systems and ensure taxpayer funds are used appropriately.
What is the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA)?
IDA, as a non-profit, is uniquely positioned to answer the most challenging U.S. security and science questions with objective and rigorous analysis leveraging extraordinary scientific, technical, and analytic expertise.
What does statistical research look like in this position?
- Assist in the design, planning, and observation of operational tests (e.g., develop test designs leveraging experimental design principles, produce power calculations, travel to observe data collection process).
- Analyze test data, which may include survey, reliability, performance, simulation, streaming sensor, or other types of data.
- Assist in the preparation of documents (e.g., briefings and reports on the design, conduct, and findings of operational tests, including graphs that clearly present findings from analyses).
- Communicate effectively to mid- and senior-level civilian and military officials regarding test design methods and findings from operational tests to the government sponsor in a clear, professional manner.
- Develop new statistical methods to improve the DoD’s approach to experimental design, validation of models and simulations, and data analysis for the unique challenges of operational testing major acquisition systems, emerging technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence and autonomous systems), and data quality (e.g., small sample sizes, safety constraints, operational realism).
- Develop materials to educate the DoD’s test community statistical design and analysis.
- Possibly contribute to the development of policies, strategies, or frameworks surrounding the planning and execution of test and evaluation in DoD.
More information: https://phh.tbe.taleo.net/phh01/ats/careers/v2/viewRequisition?org=INSTITUTEDA&cws=39&rid=2914