Research Assistant Position at the Voorhees Transportation Center

Overview

The Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center (VTC) at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy is currently looking for a graduate student to work as Student Research Assistant. The research assistant will assist with a NJDOT funded research project: Transit Usage Impacts of NJ Transit-Oriented Developments (TOD). A description of the project can be found below. The position will support data analysis and mapping activities in support of research tasks.

Activities may include, but are not limited to:

• Work with the VTC research team to acquire and manage data from existing resources such as the U.S. Census, NJGIN, ESRI, cell phone data, mailing lists, etc. as well as with data collected by the research team
• Utilize statistical and geospatial analysis tools and skills to assist the research team analyze these data and to create maps and other visualizations
• Draft written interpretations of analyses

The successful candidate may also be tasked to provide support to other VTC projects.

Required skills:

• Strong data management, statistical/analytical, and geospatial analysis skills
• Excellent written and oral communications skills

Preferred skills:

• Interest and/or knowledge of transit-oriented development and transit-friendly land use practices. Knowledge of such subjects as they relate to the state of New Jersey is a plus.
• Experience with data management and analytical/statistical software such as Excel, R, SAS, Tableau and other similar software is strongly preferred.

How to Apply: 

If interested, please send resume as well as mapping and writing samples to Stephanie DiPetrillo at sdipetrillo@ejb.rutgers.edu.

Transit Usage Impacts of NJ Transit-Oriented Developments (TOD)

This research will seek to better understand the relationships between (a) Transit Oriented Development (TOD) – concentrated real estate development around transit facilities – and the travel behaviors of those who live near those facilities, and (b) TOD characteristics and its appeal to the customers of retail establishments located within TODs. Additionally, the examination of both of these avenues of study will take into account the impacts of the current pandemic and will seek to better understand transit usage and motivations before, during, and after the pandemic. The research will employ a mixed-methods approach that will utilize both quantitative (survey) and qualitative (interview and focus group) methods to achieve a richer understanding of travel and consumer choices over time.