Senior User Researcher

Our mission is to open the door to the life-changing impact of education. We build market-leading, online college credit and test-preparation solutions that help working adults earn their degrees, advance their careers, and achieve economic mobility. Recognized by Fast Company and GSV 150 as one of the world’s most innovative education companies, we are also at the forefront of AI-first learning, combining artificial intelligence with the latest learning science to improve access and outcomes at scale. Our product is our impact. Through our Keys to College and Keys to the Classroom initiatives, we have saved students over $700 million in tuition and enabled hundreds of thousands of learners to pursue and succeed in careers across nursing, teaching, counseling, business, and other high-demand fields. We are deeply focused on measurable outcomes and building products that create meaningful, lasting change in people’s lives. About the Role We’re looking for an AI first Senior User Researcher to lead and modernize our research team across product, marketing, brand and lead the AI transformation for Research. This role is for a seasoned, full-stack researcher who brings mastery of qualitative and quantitative methods, deep experience in both product and marketing research, and the experience to leverage AI to accelerate the scale and quality of research at Study.com . You’ll be responsible for leading our most important research initiatives across college credit and professional test prep segments to equip the company with strategic and actionable customer insights. You will also be responsible for internal voice of the customer programs, managing contractors and conducting your own research on high priority business areas. This is a full-time contract position. You will be expected to work during Study.com's Pacific Time business hours Monday through Friday. Additionally, you will use your own computer and have reliable access to high-speed internet. What You’ll Do Lead and scale high-impact research across product development, brand strategy, and marketing. Independently conduct complex generative and evaluative studies that uncover unmet needs, inform product vision, and de-risk decisions at scale. Implement advanced AI-native practices and embed AI into research workflows to ensure speed, quality, and impact. Define what it means to work AI-natively across research internally and for our customers. Stay up to date on the latest AI-based research techniques and tools. Connect the dots, patterns and connections across teams. Ensure insights are shared across teams and inform decisions. Partner with senior leadership to identify and evangelize the highest-impact opportunities for our customers. Be the in-house expert across all core research methods, including usability testing, ethnographic research, surveys, segmentation, message testing, brand tracking, and concept validation. Coach designers, marketers, product managers and other employees on conducting research, reviewing their projects and adapting the AI first workflow based on needs. Lead and moderate company-wide Voice of the Customer (VoC) sessions, interviewing real customers in live forums to bring their perspectives directly to cross-functional teams Manage external research contractors and vendors, including scoping, quality control, and budget alignment Build and scale a research enablement model, coaching designers, marketers, and product managers to run self-serve research with confidence and consistency. Develop tools, templates, and guidance that scale research capabilities and impact. Collaborate with cross-functional leadership to build and prioritize a unified, impact-driven research roadmap Be a skilled communicator to peers to executives. Articulate effective customer stories to drive change and inform strategy of product initiatives to business strategy. What You’ll Bring To The Role 5+ years in user research roles, with experience spanning product, marketing, and brand research Deep fluency in all major research methodologies, qualitative and quantitative, statistical analysis, generative and evaluative. Hands on experience moderating user interviews is required. Experience managing contractors, vendors, and agencies across multiple workstreams Expert knowledge of AI tools to support the end-to-end research workflow Expert knowledge of UserTesting and SurveyMonkey for usability testing, survey design, and rapid feedback collection Strong leadership and enablement skills to equip non-researchers to conduct reliable, lean research Fluent in English (written and verbal) At Study.com , we know that strong communities are built on the power of our diversity, and we respect and strive to understand for the diverse identities, race, ethnicities, backgrounds, and perspectives of our team members. Our work and company culture have been consistently recognized, including: Inc. Best Place to Work Fortune Great Places to Work – Best Workplaces in the Bay Area Golden Bridge Awards – Gold Winner, Corporate Social Responsibility San Francisco Business Times & Silicon Valley Business Journal – Best Places to Work Study.com provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, veteran or disability status. In addition to federal law requirements. Study.com complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. Additionally, qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered for the position in accordance with applicable state and local laws.