JHM Professional Development and Career Office

I wear several different hats at Mathematica. As a researcher, I am responsible for designing and implementing studies relating to Medicaid and behavioral health services. I am a mixed-methods researcher, but currently most of my work relies on quantitative methods. In addition to the research, I manage two very large research tasks, which involves strategic planning, staffing, and budgeting. Finally, I supervise seven Master’s-level health research analysts.

During my time at the National Institute of Mental Health, I realized that I was really interested in investigating mental health services. This informed my decision to pursue a PhD in the Department of Health Policy and Management at Bloomberg. Although I had a great experience as a PhD student at Hopkins, I realized I was less interested in a career in academia and more intrigued by a position more directly connected to policymakers. Because Medicaid is the biggest payer of mental health services, I decided to take an internship at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). During this time, I learned that much of the data-related work was contracted to Mathematica, which led me to considering my current position.

While in graduate school, my ideal career path was often unclear. Fortunately, my advisor helped me explore my options. With her help, I realized I needed a highly interactive and energetic work environment. I knew I was interested in policy, and for that reason wanted to be based in DC. I did feel a pull to work in government, but I ultimately decided that Mathematica was a better fit. Mathematica has been my home since I graduated.

The transition to a non-academic position was both challenging and relieving. As a graduate student, the research process was largely independent, and I was responsible for all aspects of my work. I proposed a research question and analysis plan, carried it out, and wrote it up with the guidance of a phenomenal dissertation committee. In my current position, my responsibilities are much more siloed. For example, I may be responsible for designing a study, but we have a dedicated programming team that is specifically trained in coding. Frankly, I am a very clunky coder, so I felt relieved that I was responsible for the aspects of the research project for which I was trained. But I had to learn to delegate, and I needed to give up control over many aspects of the process that I was used to carrying out myself. I think the quality of our work greatly benefits from this process, but it was a big adjustment after completing a dissertation.

A very satisfying part of my job is feeling like I have the ear of the people who are making important policy decisions. I have had the opportunity to work with several different groups within CMS, and they highly value the input of Mathematica employees. As researchers, we are able to give them the evidence they need to make important decisions about how to improve programs like Medicaid that serve those in greatest need.

The biggest challenge I have experienced is being in a role responsive to government interests. In academia, you have the flexibility to develop your own research agenda. By contrast, the majority of projects at Mathematica are funded via federal contracts in which the research questions are already developed, and our job is to figure out how to answer them. At times, this can be challenging when there are questions that you believe should be asked or are not a current priority. This can be especially challenging for people who have very specific research interests, which may not be a current or consistent priority. Luckily for me, I am easily amused, and I have found that CMS asks endless questions that I am interested in answering.

As a doctoral student, you are being trained almost exclusively by people who opted for careers in academia. It can be extremely difficult to get exposure to jobs outside of academic settings, and sometimes it may feel like academia is the most prestigious career path you can take. There are an overwhelming number of career options that are important, exciting, and worth exploring.

Mathematica does hire non-U.S. citizens and offers visa sponsorship.