Description

U.S. News & World Report is a multifaceted digital media company dedicated to helping citizens, consumers, business leaders and policy officials make important decisions in their lives. We publish independent reporting, rankings, data journalism and advice that has earned the trust of our readers and users for nearly 90 years. Our platforms on usnews.com include Education, Health, Money, Travel, Cars, News and 360 Reviews.

We reach more than millions of people monthly during moments when they are most in need of expert advice and motivated to act on that advice directly on our platforms. Our signature franchises include our “Best” series of consumer guides on colleges, graduate schools, hospitals, diets, cars, financial services and more. These guides provide an easy-to-digest list for consumers to better understand and compare when making their decisions. We publish annual guides of the authoritative Best Colleges and Best Hospitals rankings on our website and in print. And our U.S. News Live flagship events highlight important national conversations including Healthcare of Tomorrow and The State of Equity.

We believe in having a broad range of talent and backgrounds at U.S. News. We strive to maintain a welcoming workplace where everyone is given an opportunity to succeed and contribute to their fullest. Learn more about our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiative.

Your role in helping us shape the future:

U.S. News & World Report is seeking an experienced data analyst with a background or interest in journalism to gather and analyze data for our Government Rankings projects and participate in the broader news workflow. This full-time position requires solid data analysis and research skills, experience reporting findings in an intuitive way for a public audience, and the ability to identify, evaluate and leverage third-party data sets. 

The position is based in New York or Washington, D.C., but is open to remote applicants.

Are you up to the challenge?

• Collect, analyze, organize and manage data for rankings projects such as Best States and Best Countries, special reports and other editorial content.

• Work in-house and with external data partners on all aspects of News/Government Rankings data projects (such as sourcing, methodology, weighting and/or validating the data).Assist News/Government Rankings editors and reporters by performing data analysis to inform rankings-based stories and other editorial content and participating in feature ideation.

• Serve as the USN data expert for News/Government Rankings, ensuring data used within rankings projects and editorial content meets and exceeds our standards.

• Develop and document processes, tools and standards for analyzing and displaying data across the News/Government Rankings verticals.

• Assist with creating data visualizations to enhance newsroom rankings projects, daily editorial content, feature/enterprise content and other products.

• Write occasional stories based on in-house data and external data from public sources.

• Work with communications and social media teams to facilitate outreach and promotion, forming responses to reader feedback and other inquiries.

Requirements

You should definitely have:

• Five years to eight years of professional news editing or reporting experience, preferably in an online news environment.
• A bachelor’s degree in journalism with a focus on data journalism, or an undergraduate degree in a quantitative major with experience calculating statistics and developing models (e.g. mathematics, data science, data analytics, computer science, physics, etc.) and an interest or experience in journalism. Equivalent work experience may be considered in lieu of an undergraduate degree.
• Strong research, writing and analytical skills.
• Experience collecting, analyzing, transforming, aggregating and summarizing data from multiple sources.
• Experience using statistics, including concepts such as normalization, margin of error and developing composite indicators.
• Expertise working with spreadsheets, including creating pivot tables and using advanced formulas.
• Interest in public policy in the fields of health, economics, education and governance.
• Excellent collaboration and communication skills.
• Ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously and meet strict deadlines.

It would be nice if you had:

• Experience building interactive data visualizations using platforms such as Tableau or Flourish, or building tailor-made visualizations using HTML, CSS and JS. 
• Experience with data analysis software, particularly writing analytics code in Python using platforms such as Jupyter or Google Colab, and libraries such as Pandas – or similar technologies.
• Familiarity with data formats beyond spreadsheets.
• Familiarity with creating and querying (SQL) relational databases.
• Familiarity with content management systems and web production.
• Familiarity with survey design and sample size evaluation.

What it’s like to work with us:

Talent is our best asset! 

• We invest in people with passion and potential who understand U.S. News’ dedication to our consumers. We offer:
• An entrepreneurial, mission-driven culture with core values of quality and integrity.
• A focus on fostering personal and professional growth.
• Competitive benefits including paid vacation time, medical, tuition reimbursement and training.
• A collaborative work environment – fun, diverse, inclusive and ambitious co-workers.

Other Job Info:

• These statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees assigned to this job. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of employees assigned to this job.
• U.S. News & World Report strongly encourages all employees to be fully vaccinated (including boosters). 
• Please submit a resume for consideration. A cover letter explaining how your experience relates to the role is also encouraged. 
• Preference for applicants based in New York or Washington, D.C., to work a hybrid schedule in those office locations. Remote applicants will be considered.
• The base salary for this position is $80,000 to $120,000. The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of factors, including without limitation, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, interview performance, and if applicable, the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job.

We are an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.