CDDRL Summer Undergraduate Research Assistant Program
The Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) at Stanford University is an interdisciplinary center for research on development in all of its dimensions: political, economic, social, and legal, and the ways in which these different dimensions interact with one another. CDDRL bridges the worlds of scholarship and practice to understand and foster the conditions for effective representative governance, promote balanced and sustainable economic growth, and establish the rule of law. Our faculty, researchers, and students analyze the ways in which democracy and development are challenged by authoritarian resurgence, misinformation, and the perils of a changing climate.
CDDRL offers part-time (Fall/Winter/Spring) and full-time (Summer) on-campus research opportunities for Stanford undergraduates to work with faculty on research projects focused on global democratic resilience, democratic recession, the rise of authoritarianism, government performance, state building, state capacity, and economic development. We have also had students work on projects focusing regionally on Turkey, Russia, the Arab World, the United States, Europe, Latin America and Africa. Our undergraduate research assistants will continue to work on tasks like data collection, survey research, data analysis, literature reviews of relevant topics, and establishing new research initiatives.
CDDRL strives to build a community of undergraduates committed to promoting free societies, that are well governed and that lift people from poverty. We aim to include more undergraduates in our programming and especially in our policy relevant research. Students will learn how to ask good and answerable questions, construct a research design, and use varied methodologies best suited to answering their questions. We also want to encourage students to think about issues like the policy relevance of their research and the visibility of implementation of policy solutions to complex problems.
Summer 2023 Undergraduate Research Program
CDDRL is pleased to invite applications for its 2023 summer undergraduate research program, through funding provided by Stanford’s Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and CDDRL.
CDDRL is offering one 10-week full-time (40 hours per week) summer research assistantship from June 19 - August 25, 2023. This opportunity is ideal for undergraduates interested in the politics and economics of developing countries. They will have the opportunity to interact with global leaders and democracy activists as well as CDDRL/FSI faculty, scholars, and the larger research community.
The CDDRL summer intern will work on a faculty-designed research project and will intern in our Summer Fellows Program, a three-week training program hosted at Stanford for mid-career practitioners from transitioning countries who are working to advance democratic practices and economic and legal reform in contexts where freedom, human development, and good governance are fragile or at risk.
Research Project: The RA will also help compile short research papers on each of the countries represented by Fellows in the program; they may also be asked to assist in some of the writing and slide presentations that faculty at CDDRL will prepare for the program; doing some research for ongoing projects on Russia’s authoritarianism with Professor Stoner.
The Summer Fellows Program intern will conduct research on faculty-designed research project with faculty mentor, Kathryn Stoner, Mosbacher Director of CDDRL
The research award will be based on a competitive application process. We encourage students from all areas of study to apply. Interested students should submit their application, resume and statement of interest, following the guidelines given below, before Friday March 10, 2023 at 5:00 pm. Decisions regarding awards will be announced by April 3, 2023 via email.
Stipend Amount: Selected undergraduate RA will receive a stipend of $7,500 for the period.
- Work in-person from designated office space in Encina Hall at CDDRL through the summer
- Engage and interact with international fellows.
- Attend sessions of the Summer Fellows Program on a daily basis, including some weekends and evenings during the duration of the three-week program.
- Collect, process, and analyze weekly program evaluations and final program evaluation to monitor and track program progress and completion.
- Assist in the production of program-related content for the Center, including news stories/blogs, interviews, social media, photography, etc.
The Center's research assistant positions are partially funded by the office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (VPUE). Please see the student eligibility requirements.
-
All Stanford undergraduate students, of all years and disciplines, in good academic standing are eligible to apply.
-
This is a full-time (40 hours per week for 10 consecutive weeks during the summer) research opportunity, open to continuing undergraduate students.
-
Co-term students and seniors are eligible only if their bachelor’s degree will not be conferred before the end of the research appointment.
-
Co-term students paying graduate tuition are not eligible.
-
Students serving a suspension or on a leave of absence during Summer quarter are not eligible.
-
Students are not permitted to engage in another full-time internship, research position, job, or volunteer opportunity (whether funded by Stanford or otherwise) during full-time, summer research assistantships.
-
Student athletes should confirm the impact of any awarded stipend on their athletic eligibility by contacting the Compliance Services Office prior to committing to a research project.
