Trueblood.city is hiring a graduate researcher to support a project developing a forthcoming National Building Museum exhibition. The exhibition is meant to be a layperson's introduction to the things that shape cities in the US, and to the ways in which cities in turn shape us. The exhibition will uncover the hidden forces that build and sustain cities, from zoning laws to public policies, from social movements to economic trends, from music to industrial innovations, and shows how these influence every aspect of our lives.

The graduate researcher will help the content leads with research on various cities and urban history topics, as well as identification of potential objects for the exhibit. They will provide assistance with organizing information and writing up short reports and potential exhibit language. They may be asked to join meetings with the content and design teams.

The ideal candidate is a student or early career professional with experience in urban planning, public policy, transportation and/or relevant social sciences. While they must have demonstrated research experience, they also should have strong written and verbal skills. They must be a self-starter who is able to proactively manage their work with minimal oversight and meet or beat deadlines.

While most work will be remote, an ability to meet in the Washington, DC region is preferred. The position will start in June 2025 and continue through September 2025 with the potential to support future work and projects through a successful engagement.

Skills & Background

• Experience with research in the areas of urban planning or place-based social science

• Demonstrated ability to proactively and independently work on projects and manage deadlines

• Strong written, verbal, and analytical skills

• Demonstrated attention to detail

• Proficiency in Google Suite and Microsoft Suite required

• Relevant Bachelor's Degree.

• Graduate degree either in process or received is preferred but not required

Compensation

The graduate assistant will be an hourly 1099 contract employee with an expectation of approximately 70 hours of work between June and September 2025 at a rate of $45/hour.

Application Details 

Please send a email of interest detailing your experiences that match the necessary skills and professional resume (in pdf format) to resumes@trueblood.city. Interviews will be conducted immediately on a rolling basis. We encourage all who are interested to apply.

About Trueblood.city

Trueblood.city is a housing, economic development, policy, and land use firm. Current work includes currently supporting regions applying for U.S. Department of Commerce’s Regional Tech Hubs funding, supporting housing and land use research and reform, and project managing DC's Downtown Action Plan. 

Its principal, Andrew Trueblood is a nonresident fellow at the Urban Institute, a senior advisor for housing at the DC Policy Center, an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University, and a Trustee of the DC Public Library Board. He was formerly DC’s Director of Planning. More about Andrew and Trueblood.city can be found at https://www.trueblood.city. 

Trueblood.city provides equal employment opportunities to all applicants regardless of their age, race, creed, color, religion, national origin, alienage, citizenship, disability, sex, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, partnership status, military status, predisposing genetic characteristics, or any other characteristics protected by federal, state or District of Columbia laws.