Research Agricultural Economist

Summary

This position is located with the USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS), Office of Food Markets, Kansas City, MO. in this position, the selectee will lead policy and data driven research on the organization and behavior of the retail food sector with implications for consumers and food prices.

Duties

• Participate in research projects and cooperates with other team members in the preparation and publication of policy-relevant research topics.
• Plan and conduct complex and difficult economic analyses and research related to food markets and food access.
• Probe and analyze primary and secondary data and information collected from a wide variety of sources to determine their validity and sufficiency; data and information may contain significant gaps and vary greatly in reliability.
• Refine and use forecasting methods similar to those used in ERS's Food Price Outlook and monitor current trends in both retail and upstream markets to best understand drivers of food price changes.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement 11/13/2026 including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Basic Requirements Degree:economics, that included at least 21 semester hours in economics and 3 semester hours in statistics, accounting, or calculus. OR Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in economics, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. AND In addition to the basic requirements above, all applicants must also meet the following minimum qualification requirements: GS-12 Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are: Qualifying experience for GS-12 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-11 which is directly related to the work of this position and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience is experience producing published or unpublished formal written materials (e.g., memoranda, reports, briefing materials, manuscripts, or research papers) in economics, statistics or public policy; conducting microeconomic or micro econometric research and identifying and collecting appropriate information and/or data to analyze economic theories, issues, or hypotheses. OR Education: Successful completion of a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, if related. Related degrees may include Agricultural Economics, Applied Economics, or equivalent doctoral degree in related disciplines. OR A combination of Ph.D. education and specialized experience as described above. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

Please see above for education qualification requirement information.