Research Associate Values Her Intellectual Curiosity

Name: Tara Riggs (she/her)

PhD: Political Science, Binghamton University, 2023

What was your main area of research?

I studied sexism and the behavior of voters when faced with a female candidate for mayor, governor, or President.

When candidate gender is unknown, there are no significant deviations from party when voting. When gender is known, voters begin to switch away from the female candidate - even if that means voting for the opposite party.

I found that current scales of sexism are flawed and proposed an additional variable to capture a more holistic view of how candidate gender influences votes.

What is your current job?

I am a Research Associate (Program Associate) at Manhattan Strategy Group, and I work remotely in Philadelphia.

I support evaluation and research design. I am a project leader of two programs with private foundation clients and lead data reporting on some government contracts. I often write reports, develop decks, and am responsible for the design, execution, and analysis of surveys.

What is your favorite thing about your job?

I love the amount of trust senior management has on me. I don't feel like someone is breathing down my neck. There are people I can and frequently go to for questions or guidance, but I am trusted to complete work to a high standard without being micromanaged.

What is the most important skill you developed or experience you had during your PhD that now helps you in your current position?

Intellectual curiosity

How did you build the skills necessary for your current role?

I worked as a research assistant for 4 years on a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant while at the same time doing my own social science experimental work. Through these, I learned how the sausage is made, and now I frequently engage in similar material.

How did you find this position? What were the career steps you took to get to where you are now?

I found it through ZipRecruiter.

PhD graduate ➡️ non profit (laid off due to changing priorities against research) ➡️market research company (left due to unethical practices) ➡️ Research Associate and Program Manager

If someone is interested in a similar role, what would you recommend they start doing now to prepare?

Try to build skills in mixed methods and 'hard" skills like Python. You should also become familiar with government data.

Why did you decide to not pursue a career in academia?

I went on the market and was a finalist once in my first year and had a fly out offer my second year, but I was craving stability and did not get the sense that this would bring me stability and room for growth. I adjuncted once while working my current role but decided that while I love what I teach, it was not going to be sustainable.

What advice do you have for someone getting their PhD and looking to pursue a career outside of academia?

Start networking and try to align research to areas you'd like to work in. I knew I wanted to work with surveys, so my work during my PhD was almost always survey based (original and longitudinal).

Are there any components of your identity you would like to share, including how they have impacted your journey?

I was the first in my family to go to college and kept on going. As a low income first generation college graduate, I had a sense of urgency and a desire to impress people because I knew what was at stake. I also struggle with mental health and would not have survived this process had it not been for my amazing psychiatrist who understood pressure and helped me manage my anxiety in a healthy way.