Applied Research Fellow

Description

• The Decision Lab is an applied research and innovation firm that works with Fortune 500s and governments around the world to turn decision science into positive impact. Our work has been featured in places like the New York Times, Forbes, Bloomberg, HBR, etc., and products we've helped design are used by over a billion people.
• We’re also one of the largest applied behavioral science publications globally, with over 5M annual readers, focused on translating academic research into real-world impact.
• Finally, we collaborate with Academic Institutions (e.g. McGill, NYU, LSE, etc.) to publish peer-reviewed research in our focus areas.
• We’re seeking late PhD-level Applied Research Interns to join us on a part-time basis. This role is designed for students whose internship or research placement is funded or sponsored by their university or an external academic program.
• This position is designed to expose you to both research and application, with the intended balance being approximately 40% consulting work and 60% research-focused work.
• Remote-friendly, but prefer someone who can come to enjoy our Saint Henri office on the Canal!
• Length: 3-4 months.

The Decision Lab is an applied research and innovation firm. We use behavioral science & design to help ambitious organizations create a better future. We do this by providing consulting services to some of the largest organizations in the world, carrying out research in priority areas, and running one of the largest publications in applied behavioral science. In the past, we have helped organizations such as the Gates Foundation, Capital One, the World Bank, and numerous Fortune 500s solve some of their thorniest problems using scientific thinking.

WHAT WE’VE WORKED ON

• Our collaboration with the World Bank – on incentive frameworks for knowledge-sharing.
• Our work with Capital One – a study we did on helping Americans undo the effects of stress on financial decisions.
• Our insights – we are one of the largest publications in applied behavioral science.
• Our biases – we provide resources for organizations to learn about how behavioral science works.

What you'll be working on

This internship is structured as a mentored applied research placement, designed to complement graduate-level training and provide exposure to how behavioral science is used outside of purely academic settings.

Interns work on clearly scoped projects under the supervision of senior staff and contribute to ongoing research and consulting initiatives. The emphasis is on learning-by-doing, methodological rigor, and translating academic insights into real-world contexts.

Broadly, the role involves a mix of:

Research & Analysis (approximately 60%)

• Conducting structured literature reviews and evidence syntheses.
• Supporting experimental design, measurement strategies, and analysis plans.
• Assisting with behavioral diagnostics and research frameworks.
• Contributing to research notes, working papers, policy briefs, or public-facing research outputs.
• Participating in internal research discussions and reviews.
• Supporting applied research projects with public- and private-sector partners.
• Translating research findings into practical insights and recommendations.
• Assisting with research-backed reports, presentations, or briefings.
• Observing how academic research is adapted for policy, organizational, or technological contexts.

The balance between research and applied work may vary slightly depending on project needs and the intern’s academic background.

Qualifications

Must-haves:

• Current late-stage PhD student in a relevant discipline (e.g., psychology, AI, economics, public policy, cognitive science, behavioral science, data science, or a related field).
• Familiarity with behavioral science concepts and methods, such as experimental design, causal inference, behavioral interventions, or decision-making research.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills, including the ability to engage with academic literature.
• Clear written communication skills in English, particularly for research summaries and analytical writing.
• Experience conducting literature reviews, research syntheses, or empirical analysis.
• Ability to work independently on scoped research tasks while engaging collaboratively with a research team.
• Ability & desire to leverage AI tools (e.g. Cursor, Claude Code, etc.) to accelerate coding & analysis work.

Preferred (but not required):

• Exposure to applied research, policy analysis, or consulting-style work.
• Familiarity with AI-related topics (e.g., human–AI interaction, algorithmic decision-making, misinformation, or responsible AI), though technical expertise is not required.
• Interest in applied, policy-adjacent, or non-academic research career pathways.
• We recognize that students come from diverse academic traditions. Candidates are not expected to meet every criterion to be considered a strong fit.

How to apply

To apply, please submit:

• A short CV (1–2 pages) outlining your academic background and relevant experience.
• A brief statement of interest (up to 200 words) describing:
• Your academic focus and current program.
• Your interest in applied behavioral science research.
• How this internship aligns with your training or career goals.

Please note that this position is unpaid because it is meant to target PhD students who are already funded - either by their home program or through special programs at their home institution (e.g., graduate internship fellowships, doctoral internship programs, mobility awards). We do not accept candidates who want to work for free, as this unfairly prioritizes those with privileged backgrounds. To this end, please indicate your source of funding in your statement.

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to a brief conversation to discuss research interests, supervision structure, and alignment with current projects.

TDL IS AN EQUAL-OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Research has found that women and people from marginalized backgrounds are more likely to feel that they’re unqualified for a position if they can’t check 100% of the boxes on the posting. So we’re telling you directly: you don’t need to be the perfect candidate in order to be a good fit for this role. If you’re a curious, communicative, and passionate person who loves to write about science, we want to hear from you.

More About The Decision Lab

OUR VALUES

As a social enterprise, we have a deep-rooted belief that better decisions make a better world. However, improving decisions is a messy and difficult thing. For this reason, we have laid out a clear set of criteria for what constitutes good work. Our approach is inspired by many of the organizations and individuals we use as role models.

We believe that a good approach to creating social impact is SPICE: Socially conscious, Pragmatic, Inventive, Catalytic, and Evidence-based. We use these criteria to evaluate ourselves, our work, the clients we choose to take on, and the people we make part of our team. Read more about SPICE below:

Socially conscious

We create positive and fair outcomes for individuals, organizations, and societies. The outcomes that societies want to achieve are constantly being discussed and revised, always a work in progress. They are not defined from the outset or from the outside. For these outcomes to be sustainable, they must integrate societal, environmental, and economic dimensions.

Pragmatic

We develop solutions that are practical, effective, and attainable. We are deeply committed to bringing our ideals to life. To do so, we let the problem be the guide for our attention. We are agnostic regarding approaches and dispassionate in our assessment of candidate solutions. This unwavering focus on the problem allows us to employ the full range of tools at our disposal, deploying the right ones for each context.

Inventive

We develop solutions that are not constrained by the current reality. When no existing solution is adequate to the problem at hand, we must move from curation to creation. Success in these contexts requires a commitment to exploration and an openness to inspiration.

Catalytic

We develop solutions that spark rapid transition to a new paradigm. When we reach a tipping point, a small nudge sparks a change from one equilibrium state to another. By starting small and iterating quickly, we manage the change in a deliberate and responsible manner, ensuring that the catalytic reaction is positive when unleashed at scale. We can also help manage the journey to the tipping point, creating pre-conditions for catalytic projects to take off.

Evidence-based

We develop solutions that use evidence as a compass. We are deeply committed to using evidence to guide our actions. We build evidence in-house through robust experimentation and integrate our findings into a wider body of knowledge, coming from many people and many places. This cohesive landscape of insights allows us to triangulate the best course of action.

The Decision Lab is a socially-conscious applied research firm. We provide consulting services to some of the largest organizations in the world, carry out research in priority areas, and run one of the largest publications in applied behavioral science. In the past, we have helped organizations such as the Gates Foundation, Capital One, and the World Bank solve some of their thorniest problems using scientific thinking.