Postdoctoral Research Opportunity – Global LLM Values Benchmarking Working Group
Northwestern University is seeking applicants for a postdoctoral scholar position in the School of Communication and Buffett Institute for Global Affairs. Candidates will work with Prof. Yingdan Lu, Prof. Erik Nisbet, and Prof. Nicholas Diakopoulos from the School of Communication, Prof. Stephen Nelson from Department of Political Science, and Prof. Kalyani Chadha from the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communication to support the research in Global LLM Values Benchmarking Working Group.
The Global LLM Values Benchmarking Working Group is undertaking a systematic, comparative assessment of geopolitical sociopolitical values in Large Language Models (LLMs). Our priority is to attract social science researchers who have a computational social science background and experiences with large language models to collaborate with an interdisciplinary team to design, implement, and evaluate methods for benchmarking sociopolitical values in LLMs. The postdoctoral fellow will have opportunities to publish in leading academic journals, develop cross-country comparative analyses, contribute to open benchmarking datasets and interactive dashboards, and help organize an interdisciplinary symposium on AI alignment and governance.
Preferred Qualifications
- Completed doctoral degree in communication, political science, information science, computational social science, computer science, or related fields;
- Prior experience and proficiency in working with large language models including programming, benchmarking, and/or human-centered evaluation;
- Demonstrated skills in data science, statistical analysis, and computational modeling;
- Ability to work in highly collaborative and interdisciplinary teams;
- Strong communication (both written and oral), teamwork, and project management skills;
- Creativity and initiative to conceptualize new interdisciplinary research directions.
Applications should include:
- Cover letter describing your interest in and qualifications for this position;
- Curriculum Vitae;
- Two published papers, conference proceedings, or equivalent writing samples that best demonstrate your expertise and fit for the position;
- Research Statement (up to 2 pages) outlining your research achievements and agenda
- Names and contact information of three academic references
- Link to professional webpage or portfolio
Details
- Timeframe: This is a one-year position with an expected starting date between July 1 and September 1, 2026;
- Location: The postdoctoral scholar is expected to be in residence at Northwestern campus (Evanston, IL) at least three days per week during the academic quarters, participating in project and lab activities.
- Salary: The target salary for this position is $75,000 per year, commensurate with experience and qualifications.
- Benefits: Visit Postdoc Benefits Plan for more information on benefits for postdoctoral scholars.
Review of applications will begin January 16, 2026 and will continue until the position is filled. Please email your application materials to: Yingdan Lu.