Columbia Business School offers a number of opportunities to do high-impact research in the ultimate laboratory for business: New York City. Our renowned faculty work closely with and mentor our predoctoral Staff Associates, postdoctoral research fellows, research assistants, Columbia Undergraduate Business Scholars (CUBS), and summer research interns to prepare them for future careers in business research.
Columbia Undergraduate Students
- Research Assistants:
Assist with data analysis, data labeling, participant recruitment, literature reviews, running in-person and online studies, and more on an on-demand basis for CBS researchers. Spring 2027 Applications will open in November.
- Columbia Undergraduate Business Scholars (CUBS):
Each CUBS is paired with a faculty member working on a long-term research project, and, in the process, develops basic research and data analytics skills and gains insight into careers in academia and Business Research.
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Columbia Graduate Students
Columbia Master's students interested in supporting business research and/or applying their quantitative skills in a research setting are encouraged to apply to the CBS Student Data Analyst roles. Data Analysts should have expertise in exploratory data analysis (EDA), statistics, web scraping, Natural Language Processing (NLP), and more.
Data Analysts are matched with specific faculty projects as needs arise. Projects vary in scope, duration, and technical requirements. Graduate students in quantitative fields are encouraged to apply.
Summer Research Internship
CBS Summer Research Internship Program (SRI) exposes students to the world of business research. Each intern is matched to a participating faculty member on an active research project. This is a paid, full-time summer internship program. Interns engage in research, weekly seminars, networking events, and a final research presentation of their work.
Undergraduate and first-year master's students are eligible to apply for this internship program. Please visit the page below for more information on requirements and eligibility.
Predoctoral Staff Associates
The Predoctoral Staff Associate is a full-time, one- to two-year research appointment based in a specific Columbia Business School Division and/or Center. Staff Associates contribute actively to multiple faculty-led research projects across all stages of the research process—from early conception through publication.
This role provides strong preparation for doctoral study. Many former Staff Associates have gone on to PhD programs at leading business schools and related disciplines, including economics and sociology.