Project Manager, Kinder Institute for Urban Research

Special Instructions to Applicants: Applicants should attach a resume and cover letter in PDF format to the Supporting Documents section of the application.

About Rice

Boasting a 300-acre, tree-lined campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has a 6-to-1 undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio and a residential college system that supports students intellectually, emotionally, and culturally through social events, intramural sports, student plays, lecture series, courses, and student government. Developing close-knit, diverse college communities is a strong campus tradition, which is why Rice is highly ranked for best quality of life and best value among private universities.

Rice is also a wonderful place to work. Rice faculty, staff, and students share values that are essential to our success as a healthy community. Those values guide our decisions and behaviors and shape Rice’s culture. They come through in the way we treat each other and the welcome we extend to our visitors. These values can be recalled simply by our name — RICE — Responsibility, Integrity, Community, and Excellence.

Position Summary

The Kinder Institute for Urban Research seeks a full-time Project Manager to serve as an advisory-capacity operational partner supporting research centers and institutional enablement teams (IETs). The Project Manager helps structure work, coordinate across teams, support compliance and process follow-through, maintain project visibility, and improve execution across KIUR initiatives. This role strengthens research and operational execution through project coordination, meeting and documentation support, timeline and deliverable tracking, workflow maintenance, stakeholder communication, and identification of risks or dependencies. The Project Manager may prepare, coordinate, document, and advise but does not replace leader-level authority, strategic ownership, or formal supervisory responsibility.

The Kinder Institute for Urban Research aims to improve lives through data, research, engagement, and action. The institute consists of five research centers focused on critical aspects shaping the social and cultural landscape of the Houston area. The five centers research housing, education, community and public health, economic mobility and inequality, and population dynamics. Each center investigates its particular topic area and works across centers to build interdisciplinary teams specializing in solutions-oriented research. The centers use a research-practice partnership (RPP) model to jointly design, develop, and conduct research that values diversity in expertise and prioritizes the community in identifying and addressing some of the most pressing questions and challenges facing greater Houston. We strive for our research to inform decision-making and bring about systemic change.

The ideal candidate will possess a commitment to KIUR's mission and be able to work and communicate effectively with others to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines. They must be adaptable to change, possess the ability to prioritize competing deadlines, and have excellent organizational skills.

Workplace Requirements

Occasional travel
Periodic evening and/or weekend work as needed

Workplace Location

This position is offered as a hybrid role, combining both in-office and remote work to provide flexibility and support collaboration. [3 days in-office / 2 days remote]. Per Rice policy 440, work arrangements may be subject to change.

Hiring Range

This is a full-time, benefits-eligible position, and the hiring salary is $65,000 - $67,000 annually, depending on skills and experience. Exempt (salaried) positions under FLSA are not eligible for overtime.

Minimum Requirements

Bachelor’s degree
- In lieu of the education requirement, additional related experience, above and beyond what is required, may be substituted on an equivalent year-for-year basis
1+ years of experience in project management, research administration, operations, compliance support, or a related field
- In lieu of the experience requirement, additional related education, above and beyond what is required, may be substituted on an equivalent year-for-year basis

Skills:

Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to work effectively with a wide range of partners
Working knowledge of project coordination principles, documentation practices, and risk identification
Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines

Preferences

Experience in a university, nonprofit, research, public sector, or mission-driven setting
Experience using Monday.com, Box, Adobe, Qualtrics, Teams, or similar cloud-based systems
Experience supporting research compliance, grant coordination, community-engaged work, or cross-functional operational processes
Demonstrated ability to build collaborative working relationships and adapt within a growing organization

Essential Functions

Support project lifecycle activities, including kickoff preparation, timeline development, deliverable tracking, status follow-up, and closeout support across assigned research and/or IET areas
Translate meeting discussions, stakeholder inputs, and workstream updates into actionable tasks, timelines, dependencies, and updates within KIUR’s project management systems
Coordinate recurring meetings, prepare agendas and supporting materials, document key decisions and action items, and maintain records for relevant stakeholders
Track project progress and flag emerging risks, dependencies, bottlenecks, or communication gaps to the appropriate leader or supervisor
Facilitate coordination between supported teams and KIUR internal partners, including research, grants, data, finance, people operations, communications, development, and compliance-related functions, as appropriate
Support research and operational compliance activities by tracking requirements, maintaining documentation, coordinating routing needs, and helping ensure timely follow-through on approvals and deadlines
Maintain organized project files, shared records, and archives in approved KIUR systems such as Box and Monday.com
Prepare project summaries, updates, and reports for supervisors and supported teams
Participate in process improvement efforts by identifying workflow challenges, documenting suggested changes, and supporting the adoption of updated tools or processes
Performs all other duties as assigned

Additional Functions

Assist with meeting and project reporting for leadership-facing updates
Support documentation and tracking related to MOUs, data-sharing agreements, IRB workflows, or other compliance-related processes under established direction
Assist with onboarding team members to PM tools, templates, and tracking expectations in collaboration with senior PM staff and/or the RISS role

The Kinder Institute: https://kinder.rice.edu

Rice University HR | Benefits: https://knowledgecafe.rice.edu/benefits

Rice Mission and Values: Mission and Values | Rice University

Rice University is committed to ensuring Equal Employment Opportunity and welcoming the fullness of diversity into our candidate pools. Rice considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability, or protected veteran status. Rice also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified persons with disabilities. If an applicant requires a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, please contact Rice University’s Human Resources Office via email at facstaffada@rice.edu for support.

If you have any additional questions, please email us at jobs@rice.edu. Thank you for your interest in employment with Rice University.