Research Scientist

Location: Raleigh, NC

If you’re passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country—and you’re committed to working hard to play your part in building that future—consider WGU as the next step in your career.

Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families.

The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs.

At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is:

Grade: Technical 406

Pay Range: $98,300.00 - $147,400.00

At WGU Labs, the Research Scientist will help shape the future of learning by designing and executing research on educational innovations, including AI-enabled learning and assessment tools. This role is ideal for a researcher who brings a strong foundation in learning science or educational research, enjoys turning complex questions into rigorous research plans, and can independently move research from design through execution and communication.

You will work across research, learning design, product, engineering, and external partners to evaluate educational products and programs. You will use qualitative and quantitative methods to understand effectiveness, validity, and the learner experience, translating findings into insights that inform meaningful action.

What You’ll Do

Own research plans and execute rigorous mixed-methods studies, selecting appropriate approaches to ensure findings are valid, reliable, and meaningful.

Design and conduct evaluation and validation studies of educational products and AI-enabled tools, including learner interviews, surveys, usability testing, A/B testing, and quasi-experimental studies.

Use SQL and R or Python to prepare and analyze data, apply statistical methods and classification algorithms, test hypotheses, identify relationships, and support research findings.

Partner with research, learning design, product, engineering, faculty, and other stakeholders to translate research questions and user stories into technical requirements and actionable research plans.

Synthesize academic literature and other primary and secondary research, identifying important findings, evidence gaps, and opportunities to inform educational innovation.

Turn data and research findings into clear, compelling narratives, visualizations, presentations, reports, and publications for internal and external audiences, including contributions to grant-funded deliverables.

Drive research projects with a high degree of autonomy while contributing to a collaborative research environment, sharing knowledge, mentoring peers on foundational research methods, and continuously building your own skills.