See Change is Hiring - Research Intern

See Change is hiring a Spring Research Intern.

Description of Position: See Change is recruiting an energetic SPRING INTERN to join our small, energetic and creative staff. The position is 15 to 40 hours per week, depending on interest and availability. The responsibilities and tasks for this position are as follows:

1. Data Collection and Analysis: Facilitate and support data collection, with emphasis on the use of survey and guided observations. Participate in visiting non-profit programs to conduct quality observations. Learn about collection and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data.  Administer surveys, monitor and troubleshoot data entry, and help produce descriptive statistical reports.
2. Literature Reviews: Contribute to the design of tools for clients by reviewing available relevant literature and research studies, and synthesizing these in writing.
3. Office and Project Management Support: Work closely with Senior Office and Project Managers to create positive systems for information communication and management.

 Qualifications: The skills and experience necessary for this position are as follows:

1. Pursuing or completed Bachelor’s Degree in associated field (Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology, Public Health, Education, etc.)
2. Interest in a research career, and/or interest in career in social benefit sector
3. Understanding of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies – statistical analysis experience is a plus
4. Systems-thinker, i.e. able to conceptualize and understand complex structures, think in micro and macro terms, and creatively problem solve
5. Excellent oral and written communication skills
6. Demonstrated commitment to creating social good
7. Experience working with children, youth, or community-building programs a plus
8. Experience working with non-profit, community-based organizations a plus
9. Technology awareness and interest or experience using digital media as a research

Applications: To submit an application, please email your resume and cover letter, including availability to vania@seechangeevaluation.com or fax to: 415.334-2942.

6 words on the way to change

I'm very excited about Smith Magazine's Six-Word Resolution contest. Why is it that simply condensing down language can make it fun and exciting? Here are some of my favorites tiny New Years Resolutions:

Be fearless when necessary. Cry afterward.

Focus, focus, focus and something else....

see the inside of my gym

Business Jargon - 4 minute post

It's funny to me to think that one of the main reasons I was originally interested in a PhD in Linguistics was business jargon. As is the case with most things that I really like, I couldn't easily put my finger of the use and meaning of business jargon. The words that make a statement business-y weren't words that really added anything to the meaning of the phrase, except to point out, "Hey, there's business happening here!"

At the time I was working at a company that managed and modeled executive compensation. The vocabulary uptake was steep; I had to learn about a thousand new acronyms, and www.acronymfinder.com became my favorite go-to.

Well, I didn't end up studying business jargon back in graduate school, but I continued my interest in how language meaning is defined by context. Using Discourse Analysis principles and Corpus Linguistics (looking at words in the context of large bodies of text), I would dig into not just what it means to have "robust systems", but what a specific person is meaning when they say or write something at a specific time. It's a bit of a mission to sleuth for meaning amid all the tangle...