Job Placement Success

Pardee RAND Alumni Are in High Demand

Alumni of the Pardee RAND Graduate School are sought after by employers that value their quality of mind, intellectual agility, project experience, and unique ability to apply analytic tools and methodologies across a wide range of policy problems. Here are just a few of the jobs our recent alumni have taken:

  • Policy analysts at research institutions
  • Assistant professors at schools of public policy and public health
  • Intelligence analyst for a national security agency
  • Conflict management and mitigation specialist for a major development agency
  • Environmental economist for a major international development firm
  • Consultant for one of the world's leading management consulting firms

Approximately 98% of graduates receive multiple offers and find work in their field of interest within 6 months of graduation.

Postgraduate Employment by Sector, 2013-2022

A sectorial overview of job placement by year.

  • 36% public sector
  • 30% private industry
  • 22% research institution
  • 9% academia
  • 3% non-profit
  • 1% other

Initial Job Placements of Pardee RAND Graduates

The lists below indicate the first jobs of Pardee RAND Ph.D. graduates for each of the last 10 years. Note that the years represent the students' graduation date, not year of entry (cohort year).

2023

  • Associate Policy Researcher
    RAND
    Washington, DC

  • Associate Policy Researcher
    RAND
    Washington, DC

  • Energy and Climate Policy Analyst
    The Utility Reform Network (TURN)
    Oakland, CA

  • First Lieutenant
    U.S. Air Force
    Sheppard AFB, TX

  • Lieutenant
    U.S. Air Force

  • Managing Director
    TCW Asset Management
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Officer
    U.S. Air Force
    Columbus, MS

  • Operations Research Analyst
    NASA
    Washington, DC

  • Pilot
    U.S. Air Force
    Wichita Falls, TX

  • Postdoctoral Research Associate
    USC Schaeffer Center
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Presidential Management Fellow
    U.S. Government
    Washington, DC

  • Program Executive
    Science Mission Directorate
    NASA
    Washington, DC

  • Senior Project Leader
    Engineering and Technology Group
    Aerospace Corporation
    El Segundo, CA

  • Senior Research Associate
    MEF Associates
    Denver, CO

  • Statistician
    Health Resources and Services Administration
    U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
    Washington, DC

  • Young Professionals Program Fellow
    World Bank
    Washington, DC

2022

  • Applied Research Analyst
    Data, Analytics, Research & Development
    Department of Health and Human Services
    Washington, DC

  • Associate Engineer
    RAND
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Associate Policy Researcher
    RAND
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Community Outreach and Program Evaluation Specialist
    American Institute of Mathematics
    Pasadena, CA

  • Contractor
    World Bank
    Washington, DC

  • Director, Defense & National Security Accounts
    Starburst Aerospace Defense
    El Segundo, CA

  • Economist
    World Bank
    Washington, DC

  • Exercise Intelligence Planner
    U.S. Marine Corps
    Quantico, VA

  • Fellow in Governance Studies
    Brookings Institution
    Washington, DC

  • Founder
    Edge Real Estate Investment Ventures

  • Health Policy Researcher
    World Bank
    Washington, DC

  • Intelligence Officer Training
    U.S. Air Force
    San Angelo, Texas

  • Lead Faculty for Public Policy
    Yseali Academy, Fulbright University Vietnam
    Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

  • Operations Research Analyst
    NASA, Strategic Investment Division
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Pilot
    US Air Force
    Wichita Falls, TX

  • Post Doctorate Fellow
    Boston University Global Development Center
    Boston, MA

  • Principal
    Underscore Research
    Orange County, CA

  • Public Health Associate
    Public Health Institute
    Oakland, CA

  • Research Economist
    Directorate of Macrofinancial Risk Analysis
    Banco de México
    Mexico City, Mexico

  • Research Fellow
    University of California, San Francisco
    San Francisco, CA

  • Researcher and Project Lead
    Imaginative Futures

  • Senior Analyst
    Abt Associates
    Rockville, MD

  • Senior Associate
    EY Infrastructure Advisors
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Senior Economist
    Compass Lexecon
    Chicago, IL

  • Social Science Researcher
    Medicare
    San Francisco, CA

  • Trust and Safety Consumer Insights Manager
    Match Group

  • Vice President
    Tusk Strategies
    Los Angeles, CA

2021

  • Artificial Intelligence Engineer
    Verantos

  • Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Addiction Studies
    Public Administration Department, Penn State Harrisburg
    Harrisburg, PA

  • Associate Fellow
    Office of Evaluation Sciences
    Government Services Administration
    Washington, DC

  • Consultant
    Anthro-Tech

  • Manager, Cyber Commercial
    Deloitte
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Research Analyst
    Special Activities and Intelligence, CNA
    Arlington, VA

  • Research Assistant Professor
    Schaeffer Center, Price School
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Senior Research Specialist
    International Affairs, Communication, and Journalism
    USC Center on Public Diplomacy
    Los Angeles, CA

2020

  • Associate Policy Researcher and Co-Director
    Center for Gaming, RAND
    Washington, DC

  • Associate Principal
    Imaginative Future
    Grand Rapids, MI

  • Data Scientist
    California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services
    Sacramento, CA

  • Data Scientist
    Division of Poverty and Equity Global Practice
    World Bank
    Washington, DC

  • Fellow, Governance of Artificial Intelligence
    Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law
    Arizona State University
    Tempe, AZ

  • Founder
    Knegotiations

  • Founder
    SFD Research
    Washington, DC

  • Monitoring and Results Specialist
    Caribbean Development Bank
    Bridgetown, Barbados

  • Pilot
    Air Education and Training Command
    San Antonio, TX

  • Post Doctorate Fellow
    Princeton School of Public & International Affairs
    Princeton, NJ

  • Research Associate
    World Institute for Development Economics Research
    United Nations University
    Helsinki, Finland

  • Research Fellow
    Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET)
    Georgetown University
    Washington, DC

  • Senior Project Engineer
    Space Security and Defense Program
    Aerospace Corporation
    Colorado Springs, CO

  • Strategic Planner
    Office of the Assistant Secretary
    Manpower & Reserve Affairs
    U.S. Army
    Arlington, VA

2019

  • Adjunct Faculty
    Business Administration Division
    Pepperdine University
    Malibu, CA

  • Acquisition Officer
    Space and Missile Systems Center
    United States Air Force
    El Segundo, CA

  • Analytics Consultant and Machine Learning Research Scientist
    Self-Employed

  • Operations Research Officer
    Air Force Warfighting Integration Center
    United States Air Force
    Washington, DC

  • Senior Fellow
    Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation
    Seattle, WA

  • Data Scientist
    In-Q-Tel
    Arlington, VA

  • Associate
    Analysis Group
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Data Scientist
    FAIR
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Assistant Professor
    Criminology, Law, and Justice
    University of Illinois at Chicago
    Chicago, IL

  • Postdoctoral Fellow
    Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Manager
    Global Health Economics
    Amgen
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Postdoctoral Fellow
    Global Health and Population
    T. H. Chan School of Public Health
    Harvard University
    Boston, MA

2018

  • Associate Research Economist
    Precision Health Economics
    Oakland, CA

  • Consultant
    World Health Organization

  • Contracting Officer
    U.S. Air Force
    Yokota Air Base, Japan

  • Cost Estimating Analyst
    Northrop Grumman
    Redondo Beach, CA

  • Data Scientist
    KPMG

  • Economist
    IDinsight
    San Francisco, CA

  • Entrepreneur/Consultant
    Vertex Evaluation and Research LLC
    Austin, TX

  • Independent Researcher
    Open Philanthropy Project
    Washington, DC

  • Management Fellow
    Department of Consumer and Business Affairs
    Los Angeles County
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Operations Research Analyst
    United States Air Force
    Edwards AFB, CA

  • Postdoctoral Fellow
    Institute for Research on Poverty
    University of Wisconsin-Madison
    Washington, DC

  • Postdoctoral Fellow
    Center for the Study of Healthcare Innovation, Implementation and Policy
    U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Prevention Effectiveness Fellow
    Center for Global Health
    Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
    Atlanta, GA

  • Professor
    Universidad San Francisco de Quito
    Quito, Ecuador

  • Research Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Management
    Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics
    Sol Price School of Public Policy
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Research Associate
    National Laboratory of Public Policy
    Mexico City, Mexico

  • Senior Research Associate
    The Bail Project
    Venice, CA

2017

  • Air Mobility Command Studies and Analysis Directorate
    United States Air Force
    Scott AFB, IL

  • Associate Director
    Health Economics and Market Access
    BluePath Solutions
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Data Scientist
    Stabilitas
    Seattle, WA

  • Data Scientist
    ThriveHive
    Quincy, MA

  • Director of Global Health Economics
    Amgen
    Thousand Oaks, CA

  • Fellow
    World Bank Young Professonals Program
    Washington, DC

  • Health Economics Manager
    Amgen
    Thousand Oaks, CA

  • Law Student
    Pritzker School of Law
    Northwestern University
    Evanston, IL

  • Manager
    Castalia Strategic Advisors
    Washington, DC

  • Math Instructor and Instructor Pilot
    United States Air Force Academy
    Boulder, CO

  • Methodologist
    Doctor Evidence, LLC
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Policy Analyst
    United States Air Force

  • Post-Graduate Fellow
    Berkeley Initiative for Transparency in the Social Sciences
    Berkeley, CA

  • Prevention Effectiveness Fellow
    Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
    Denver, CO

  • Program Director for Research Science
    New York-Presbyterian/Weil Cornell Medical Center
    New York, NY

  • Research Scientist
    Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Researcher
    Information Society Policy Research Center
    Graduate School of Public Administration
    Seoul National University
    Seoul, Korea

  • Senior Engineer
    RAND
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Visiting Assistant Professor
    New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
    Socorro, NM

2016

  • Air Force Officer (Student Pilot)
    Air Education and Training Command
    United States Air Force

  • Analyst
    U.S. Department of Defense
    Washington, DC

  • Assistant Professor; Associate Director
    Curb Center for Art, Enterprise & Public Policy
    Vanderbilt University
    Nashville, TN

  • Associate Policy Researcher
    RAND
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Combat Rescue Officer
    Air Combat Command
    United States Air Force

  • Consultant
    Boston Consulting Group
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Cyber Strategy Lead
    Air Force Research Laboratory - Information Directorate
    United States Air Force

  • Data Science Fellow
    Insight Data Science
    Palo Alto, CA

  • Independent Research Consultant
    Pittsburgh, PA

  • People Analytics
    Facebook
    Palo Alto, CA

  • Postdoctoral Fellow
    Belfer Center - Cyber Security Project
    Harvard Kennedy School
    Cambridge, MA

  • Profesor Investigador
    School of Government
    Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey
    Monterrey, Mexico

  • Research Analyst
    Milken Institute
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Statistician
    National Guard Bureau, Readiness Center
    Arlington, VA

  • Steven M. Teutsch Prevention Effectiveness Fellow
    Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
    Atlanta, GA

2015

  • Air Force Officer (Pilot)
    United States Air Force

  • Associate Consultant
    McKinsey & Co.
    New York, NY

  • Associate Policy Analyst
    RAND
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Branch Chief, A9A Analyses and Assessments
    United States Air Force

  • Data Analyst Consultant
    IDEA Public Schools
    Weslaco, TX

  • Economist
    Millennium Challenge Corp.
    Washington, DC

  • Executive Director of Analytical Leadership
    Office of Accountability and Assessments
    Oklahoma State Department of Education
    Oklahoma City, OK

  • Institutional Research Associate
    Loyola Marymount University
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Medical Student
    UCLA Geffen School of Medicine
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Mixed Methods Researcher
    Results for Development Institute
    Washington, DC

  • Program Manager
    Space & Missiles Systems Center
    United States Air Force

  • Research Analyst
    El Camino College
    Torrance, CA

  • Research Associate
    Center for Health, Policy and Management
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Research Associate
    Dornsife Center for Economic and Social Research
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Research Programmer
    Price School of Public Policy
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Social Science Analyst
    U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
    Washington, DC

  • Special Tactics Officer
    United States Air Force

2014

  • Algorithm and R&D Scientist Engineer
    American International Group (AIG)
    New York, NY

  • Associate Economist
    Precision Health
    Boston, MA

  • Associate Economist
    Visa
    San Mateo/Foster City, CA

  • Associate Policy Researcher
    RAND
    Santa Monica, CA

  • Economics Affairs Officer
    Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
    Santiago, Chile

  • Jet Pilot Trainee
    United States Air Force

  • Junior Economist
    Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
    Paris, France

  • Manager, Analytics and Strategy
    One Acre Fund
    Nairobi, Kenya

  • Manager of Industry Analytics
    Genentech
    South San Francisco, CA

  • Pilot Trainee
    United States Air Force

  • Policy Researcher
    Abu Dhabi Police
    United Arab Emirates

  • Policy Officer
    European Commission
    Brussels, Belgium

  • Postdoctoral Fellow
    National Renewable Energy Laboratory
    Golden, CO

  • Research Associate
    Center for Economic and Social Research
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Research Associate, Modeling and Simulation
    Evidera, Ltd.
    Lexington, MA

  • Research Manager and Evaluation Specialist
    Institute for Financial Management and Research LEAD (Leveraging Evidence for Access and Development)
    Chennai, India

  • Research Programmer
    Sol Price School of Public Policy
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Senior Quantitative Associate
    Social Policy Research Associates
    Oakland, CA

  • Senior Researcher
    Kohelet Policy Reform
    Jerusalem, Israel

  • Strategic Data Fellow (Harvard Center for Education Policy Research)
    Education Northwest
    Portland, OR

  • Strategic Planner
    Northrup Grumman Corporation
    Falls Church, VA

  • Visiting Associate Professor
    University of California, Los Angeles
    Los Angeles, CA

  • Visiting Research Fellow
    Cornell University
    Ithaca, NY

Employment by Sector

Our graduates pursue careers in a range of sectors:

Pardee RAND alumni are out there making a difference! See below for the position titles and agencies and organizations for which they employ their skills and pursue their professional goals. We have indicated "early alumni" positions with a “*”.

Government

  • California Environmental Protection Agency, Climate Change Advisor
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Health Economist Fellow
  • Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Social Science Research Analyst*
  • Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Soviet Analysis, Analyst
  • China Securities Regulatory Commission, Deputy Director
  • Colorado State Senate, Senator*
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation, Management and Policy Analyst
  • Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, Office of Health Policy, Senior Policy Analyst
  • Government Accountability Office, International Affairs and Trade, Director
  • Legislative Analyst’s Office, State of California, Fiscal and Policy Analyst*
  • Los Angeles County, Office of AIDS Program and Policy, Research Analyst*
  • Los Angeles Department of Public Health, Office of Health Assessment and Epidemiology, Health Economist
  • Milwaukee County, Chief of Staff to the County Executive
  • National Institute on Aging, Behavioral and Social Research, Deputy Director
  • New York City Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability, Director
  • New York City Office of Management and Budget, Deputy Director
  • Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Head
  • Republic of Bulgaria, Secretary for Healthcare, Education and Science
  • Santa Fe Public Schools, Chief Accountability and Strategy Officer*
  • Space and Missile Systems Center, Cost Estimating Branch Chief
  • Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Senior Policy Analyst
  • U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Africa Bureau, Conflict Management and Mitigation Specialist*
  • U.S. Air Force, Intelligence Officer*
  • U.S. Air Force, Spacecraft Systems Officer*
  • U.S. Department of State, Foreign Service Officer
  • U.S. House Armed Services Committee, Professional Staff member
  • U.S. Marine Corps, Operations Research Analyst
  • Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Energy Analysis Division, Operations Research Analyst

Academia

  • American University, Public Administration and Policy, Associate Professor/MPP Director
  • Clemson University, Department of Public Health Sciences, Assistant Professor
  • Cornell University Weill Medical College, Health Policy, Assistant Professor
  • George Washington University School of Medicine, Policy Programs, Director and Assistant Professor
  • Indian Institute of Management, Center for Public Policy, Assistant Professor
  • Korea National Defense University, Research Institute on National Security Affairs, Director and Professor
  • Northwestern University, Assistant Dean of Graduate Programs
  • Pepperdine University, School of Public Policy, Associate Professor
  • Stanford University Public Policy Program, Professor and Director of Graduate Practicum
  • Stanford University School of Medicine, Associate Professor of Pediatrics
  • UCLA Geffen School of Medicine, Assistant Professor
  • University of Alabama, Birmingham School of Public Health, Department of Health Care Organization and Policy, Professor and Chair
  • University of British Columbia, Strategy and Business Economics, Sessional Lecturer
  • University of New Mexico, Department of Economics, Senior Lecturer*
  • University of South Carolina, Columbia, Assistant Professor of Health Services Policy and Management
  • University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, Research Assistant Professor
  • University of Tilburg, Law and Economics Center, Assistant Professor
  • United States Military Academy at West Point, Assistant Professor of Economics

Research Institutes

  • American Enterprise Institute, President
  • American Institutes of Research, Researcher*
  • Center for Strategic and International Studies, Defense Policy, Senior Advisor
  • George Washington University, Space Policy Institute, Director
  • Harvard Center for Education Policy Research, Denver Public Schools, Strategic Data Fellow*
  • Institute for Defense Analysis, Researcher
  • Loyola Marymount University, Director of Institutional Research
  • Mathematica Policy Research, Researcher
  • Mayo Clinic, Research Associate*
  • MITRE Corporation, Lead Multi-Discipline Systems and Policy Analyst
  • Pepperdine University, Director of Educational Research
  • RAND, Vice President and Director of RAND Health
  • RAND, Vice President and Director of National Security Research Division
  • RTI International, Senior Economist
  • UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Postdoctoral Scholar*
  • UC Davis Health System, Institute for Population Health Improvement, Research and Policy Analyst*
  • Worker's Compensation Research Institute, Public Policy Analyst
  • Yale University, Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity, Associate Research Scientist

Private Industry

  • Amgen, Inc., Department of Global Health, Health Economics Manager*
  • Bank of America, Senior Vice President
  • Booz Allen Hamilton, Associate
  • Boston Consulting Group, Consultant*
  • Bristol-Myers Squibb, Global Epidemiology and Outcomes Research, Associate Director
  • Corporate Executive Board, Executive Director
  • Google, Global Capacity Delivery, Program Manager
  • IMS Health, Inc., Health Services Researcher
  • Kaiser Permanente, Center for Effectiveness and Safety Research, Director
  • KYTHERA Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., Chief Medical Officer
  • McKinsey & Company, Associate
  • Northrop Grumman, Analysis Center, Strategic Planner
  • Southern California Edison, Business Strategy, Planning & Analytics, Analyst
  • Wellpoint, Strategic Initiatives Manager

Other Non-Profits

  • African Center for Economic Transformation, Policy Advisor
  • Geneva Centre for Security Policy, Head, Emerging Security Challenges Programme
  • International Monetary Fund, Economist
  • Vera Institute for Justice, Cost-Benefit Analysis Unit, Senior Policy Analyst
  • The Wallace Foundation, Senior Research and Evaluation Officer
  • World Bank Group, Economist, Impact Evaluations*
  • United Nations, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Senior Adviser
  • United Nations World Food Programme, School Feeding Unit, Consultant*