Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Youth Analyst

🎯 Role Definition

The Youth Analyst is a subject-matter specialist who collects, analyzes, and interprets quantitative and qualitative data related to youth programs, education, juvenile justice, health, and social services. Working with program managers, policy teams, and community partners, the Youth Analyst translates data into evidence-based recommendations, supports performance measurement and continuous improvement, and designs evaluation frameworks that center youth voice, equity, and culturally responsive practices.

This role is ideal for professionals who combine research methodology and strong stakeholder engagement skills with a passion for youth development, policy impact, and measurable program outcomes.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Research Assistant, Youth Services Research Intern, or Data Coordinator in education/nonprofit sectors
Program Associate or Case Worker with exposure to monitoring & evaluation
Junior Policy Analyst or Community Engagement Coordinator focused on youth populations

Advancement To:

Senior Youth Analyst or Evaluation Lead
Program Manager for Youth Initiatives or Policy Advisor (Youth Affairs)
Director of Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL) or Research Director

Lateral Moves:

Data Analyst (Social Services / Education)
Community Outreach Manager or Stakeholder Engagement Lead
Juvenile Justice Program Specialist

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Design, implement, and manage quantitative and qualitative evaluations of youth programs, including developing logic models, theory of change, and measurable outcome indicators that align with organizational goals and funder requirements.
Collect, clean, and analyze large and complex datasets related to youth demographics, program participation, academic outcomes, behavioral indicators, and service utilization using statistical software (e.g., R, Python, Stata, SPSS).
Produce rigorous data visualizations, dashboards, and written reports that translate analysis into clear, actionable insights for program staff, executive leadership, and community stakeholders.
Develop and maintain performance measurement systems and KPIs to monitor program fidelity, service delivery quality, and short- and long-term youth outcomes across multiple sites and partners.
Conduct longitudinal and cross-sectional analyses to identify trends, disparities, and predictors of positive and negative youth outcomes, with attention to race, gender, disability, and socioeconomic status.
Lead design and administration of surveys, structured interviews, focus groups, and participatory research methods to capture youth voice and lived experience in program evaluation and policy development.
Coordinate data-sharing agreements, intake forms, and data governance practices with partner agencies (schools, health providers, juvenile justice) to ensure compliance with privacy, confidentiality, and FERPA/HIPAA where applicable.
Build and maintain statistical models, propensity score matching, and multivariate regression analyses to estimate program impacts and control for selection bias and confounding variables.
Translate complex technical findings into plain-language executive summaries, policy briefs, and presentations for non-technical audiences including funders, elected officials, and community members.
Serve as the technical lead for grant applications and reports by drafting evaluation plans, logic models, measurement plans, and required deliverables that demonstrate impact and return on investment.
Facilitate cross-functional working groups and data review meetings that align program operations, case management, and evaluation strategies to drive continuous improvement.
Provide training and technical assistance to program staff and partners on data collection best practices, case documentation standards, and use of dashboards to inform decision-making.
Maintain an evidence base of effective youth interventions by conducting literature reviews, environmental scans, and meta-analyses to inform program design and scaling decisions.
Design and pilot data collection instruments and protocols that are culturally responsive, trauma-informed, and developmentally appropriate for children and adolescents.
Monitor fidelity of intervention delivery through site visits, observation protocols, and qualitative assessments to ensure programs are implemented as intended.
Prepare and present findings to advisory boards, youth councils, and community coalitions; incorporate stakeholder feedback into iterative evaluation cycles and program improvements.
Manage multiple evaluation projects concurrently, ensuring milestones, deliverables, and funder deadlines are met while maintaining high-quality data integrity.
Collaborate with IT and data engineering teams to build or optimize data pipelines, secure storage solutions, and automate reporting processes to scale monitoring efforts across programs.
Conduct cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit analyses of youth interventions to inform budgeting, resource allocation, and strategic planning.
Ensure all evaluation activities prioritize equity and ethical research practices, including informed consent processes, protection of vulnerable populations, and disaggregation of outcomes by key demographic variables.
Act as a liaison between researchers, practitioners, and policymakers to translate evidence into policy recommendations and programmatic action plans that improve outcomes for youth.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
Assist in drafting and tracking grant deliverables and compliance reports related to youth outcomes.
Mentor junior analysts, interns, and community researchers on evaluation methods and data ethics.
Represent the organization at community meetings, conferences, and convenings on youth services and evaluation.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Advanced proficiency in statistical analysis and software (R, Python — pandas/statsmodels, Stata, or SPSS) for quantitative program evaluation and predictive modeling.
Strong competency with data visualization and dashboarding tools (Tableau, Power BI, Looker, or D3) to create actionable, accessible visual products.
Experience designing and administering surveys and qualitative protocols, with proficiency in tools like Qualtrics, REDCap, or SurveyCTO.
Solid knowledge of database querying and management (SQL, PostgreSQL, or BigQuery) and experience working with relational datasets and ETL processes.
Familiarity with causal inference techniques (difference-in-differences, regression discontinuity, propensity score methods) and evaluation designs for non-randomized settings.
Experience constructing and maintaining monitoring & evaluation (M&E) frameworks, logic models, and indicator matrices for multi-site programs.
Practical knowledge of data governance, privacy regulations, and ethical considerations in youth data (FERPA, HIPAA, consent/assent processes).
Ability to perform cost analysis, budgeting for evaluation activities, and basic economic evaluation methods (cost-effectiveness / ROI).
Competence in qualitative data coding and analysis using tools like NVivo, Atlas.ti, or Dedoose and synthesizing mixed-methods findings.
Familiarity with GIS and spatial analysis tools (ArcGIS, QGIS) for mapping youth service access and neighborhood-level disparities.
Experience with project management tools (Asana, Jira, Trello) to manage concurrent evaluation deliverables and cross-team collaboration.

Soft Skills

Strong written and verbal communication skills tailored to diverse audiences, including youth, practitioners, funders, and policymakers.
Demonstrated ability to build trust and engage youth and community stakeholders in participatory research and evaluation processes.
Critical thinking and problem-solving aptitude with a focus on practical, evidence-based recommendations.
Attention to detail and commitment to high data quality, reproducibility, and transparent methodology.
Ability to manage competing priorities, meet deadlines, and adapt to changing program needs and funding environments.
Collaborative mindset with experience working in interdisciplinary teams and cultivating partnerships across the public and nonprofit sectors.
Cultural humility and sensitivity, including experience applying equity-focused frameworks to research and program design.
Facilitation skills for workshops, data review sessions, and co-design meetings with youth and community partners.
Leadership and mentorship abilities to grow junior staff, interns, and community researchers.
Resilience and emotional intelligence when working with trauma-exposed populations and high-stakes social issues.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's degree in social sciences, public policy, statistics, public health, education, social work, or related field.

Preferred Education:

Master's degree (MPH, MPP, MS in Data Science/Statistics, M.A. in Education, or M.S.W.) or equivalent graduate-level training in program evaluation, applied statistics, or social research methods.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Public Policy / Public Administration
Statistics / Data Science
Public Health / Epidemiology
Social Work / Human Services
Education / Youth Development

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 2–5 years of relevant experience (entry-to-mid level), or 5+ years for Senior Youth Analyst roles.

Preferred:

Demonstrable experience leading program evaluations or monitoring efforts for youth-focused programs in education, juvenile justice, foster care, mental health, or community-based organizations.
Proven track record of producing peer-reviewed reports, funder deliverables, or policy briefs that influenced programmatic or policy decisions.
Prior experience working directly with youth and families, implementing trauma-informed and culturally responsive research methods.