Adjunct Lecturer, Political Analytics (On-Campus Fall ’26 & Spring ’27)

Company Description

Columbia University has been a leader in higher education in the nation and around the world for more than 250 years. At the core of our wide range of academic inquiry is the commitment to attract and engage the best minds in pursuit of greater human understanding, pioneering new discoveries, and service to society.

The School of Professional Studies at Columbia University offers innovative and rigorous programs that integrate knowledge across disciplinary boundaries, combine theory with practice, leverage the expertise of our students and faculty, and connect global constituencies. Through nineteen professional master's degrees, courses for advancement and graduate school preparation, certificate programs, summer courses, high school programs, and a program for learning English as a second language, the School of Professional Studies transforms knowledge and understanding in service of the greater good.

Job Description

Columbia University School of Professional Studies seeks industry professionals for the role of adjunct Lecturer to develop and teach various courses in the school’s M.S. in Political Analytics program. The program combines politics with advanced quantitative methods to enhance data skills that will drive decision-making and communicate effectively about data and politics.

The program’s curriculum can be found here. Candidates should indicate in a cover letter, areas of subject matter expertise and what type of course they would be interested in or qualified to teach. Examples of current courses taught include:

• Big Data & Political Strategy
• Campaign Finance & Fundraising Analytics
• Data Science for Political Analytics
• Electoral Data & Predictive Modeling

This position may require developing the course, leading syllabus through the review process, and teaching the course.

Responsibilities

• Lead in-person class lectures, instructional activities, and classroom discussions
• Evaluate student work and grade assignments
• Monitor student concerns and inquiries, and be the first point of contact for student questions
• Hold weekly office hours
• Prepare, maintain, and enhance the course in Canvas, Columbia University’s learning management system for onsite and online courses
• Part‐time Lecturers who are new to SPS must complete Canvas training (online learning management system)
• Attend Political Analytics faculty meetings
• If assigned to design the course, responsibilities also include:
• Develop course objectives that align with program-wide learning outcomes
• Create activity maps tying course activities to objectives, ensuring industry relevance
• Draft a detailed syllabus (course description, schedule, grading rubric, and assessments) for review and approval by the Program Curriculum Committee and the Committee on Instruction (COI)
• Collaborate with Instructional Design to develop course materials through a consultative process. This includes partnering on course development (aligning objectives, materials, and assessments), creating dynamic instructional media (videos, infographics, and interactive resources), maintaining established courses with updates and troubleshooting, and receiving just-in-time assistance for targeted needs

Serving as an adjunct Lecturer provides an outstanding opportunity to educate and mentor students in the field of project management as well as to form a rewarding professional relationship with Columbia University’s world-class faculty.

Qualifications

Columbia University SPS operates under a scholar-practitioner faculty model, which enables students to learn from faculty that have outstanding academic training as well as a record of accomplishment as practitioners in an applied industry setting.

Requirements

• Graduate degree in an area related to political science, data science, quantitative methods or related field
• 10+ years of professional experience in a role involving political analytics
• Knowledge of statistics, econometrics, quantitative analysis or related techniques
• Knowledge and familiarity with analysis software (e.g. R)
• Knowledge of survey research methods, survey design, and survey data collection/aggregation/analysis

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Doctoral degree or equivalent in a relevant field
• Prior experience with electoral campaigns, policy-making initiatives, advocacy efforts, or lobbying operations
• University teaching experience, ideally at the graduate level

Additional Information

Compensation - $10,000 - $15,000 per semester-length course.

Review of applications begins immediately and will continue until positions are filled.

All Applicants, Please Provide:

• A resume/CV inclusive of university teaching experience -- highlight teaching at the graduate level
• A cover letter indicating the courses they would be interested in or qualified to teach, areas of subject matter expertise, and availability to teach in-person
• Evidence of teaching effectiveness (e.g., student evaluations of teaching, teaching observation summaries, etc.)

Your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Columbia University is an Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran