Job Market Candidates
Several RAND School students and recent alumni are actively pursuing employment opportunities. Prospective employers or executive recruiters are encouraged to contact them directly by email.
To view the profiles of current RAND School students, visit our Students page.
For more information on recruiting at the RAND School, see Career Services.
Elliott Brennan
Elliott Brennan is an assistant policy researcher at RAND and a Ph.D. candidate at the RAND School of Public Policy. His dissertation, "Strategies for Stability: Political-Military Planning for Complex Contingency Operations in the 21st Century,” focuses on the intersection of policy, strategy, and implementation for U.S.-led missions to prevent or manage conflicts.
His research interests include domestic and international food security, conflict prevention, and the intersection of development, diplomacy, and defense operations in American foreign policy. Prior to joining Pardee RAND, he worked as a contract analyst on projects related to the mission of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). His work for USAID focused on agricultural trade and markets in East Africa, as well as the application of digital and remote sensing technologies for farmers across sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and Asia.
In addition to his policy work, he spent three years working in upstate New York and Virginia on agricultural operations that specialize in holistic management for cattle and field crop production. He has a B.A. in English from Yale University.
Dissertation Topic
Strategies for Stability: Political-Military Planning for Complex Contingency Operations in the 21st Century
Faculty Advisors
Stephen Dalzell (committee chair), Lisa Saum-Manning (committee member)
Related Links
Connect with Elliott on LinkedIn
Ishita Ghai
Ishita Ghai is a health policy researcher who applies causal inference methods to understand how health behaviors are shaped by individual and group factors in low-resource settings.
She mainly studies these empirical questions in the context of randomized controlled trials or through evaluations leveraging exogenous shocks using quasi-experimental techniques. Ishita has managed several pilot and large randomized controlled trials across sub-Saharan Africa, primarily funded by the National Institutes of Health and GiveWell. In addition, she has a background in mixed-methods research, particularly in the context of intervention design and uptake.
Before joining RAND, Ishita was a research assistant at the University of California, Davis, where she helped set up the Center for Analytics and Technology in Society at the Graduate School of Management. She has an M.B.A. in business analytics and marketing from the University of California, Davis; an Ed.M. in international education policy from Harvard University; and a B.Tech. in bioinformatics from Vellore Institute of Technology.
Dissertation Topic
Health Behavior and Outcomes in Low-Resource Settings
Faculty Advisors
Zachary Wagner (committee chair), Glenn Wagner (committee member), Chad Stecher (committee member), Stephanie Bonds (reader), James Marrone (reader)
Related Links
View Ishita's RAND bio, commentaries, and publications
Asya Jones
Asya Jones is a data education leader who helps people grow into data-informed roles, even if they didn’t start there.
She designs experiential learning programs that support adult learners and professionals who bring skills from fields like public health, psychology, and healthcare administration. Her work blends applied learning with identity development, helping learners see themselves as data leaders while developing technical skills.
With experience at RAND, UCLA, and Rose Data Studio, Asya has led training initiatives spanning sectors and skill levels, including data storytelling workshops, career transition coaching, and hackathons focused on equity and access. She prioritizes belonging and real-world relevance in every program she builds.
Her current research explores how re-skilling programs support career pivots into data roles, with a focus on scaling experiential models like The Data Mine, which immerse students from all backgrounds in applied, interdisciplinary data work while supporting identity development and career exploration.
Asya is drawn to roles that bridge data education, workforce development, and learner-centered program strategy. She welcomes connections around inclusive data learning, upskilling, hackathon design, or the future of applied data science education.
Dissertation Topic
Data Journeys: Examining Pathways into Data Careers Through Non-Degree Credentials
Faculty Advisors
Jessica Paige (committee chair), Melanie Zaber (committee member), Amelia Parnell (external committee member)
Related Links
Weilong (David) Kong
Weilong (David) Kong is a doctoral candidate at the RAND School and an assistant policy researcher at RAND.
His career interests include U.S.-China Rivalry, OSINT-based defense & defense industrial base analysis, hybrid warfare in the context of Great Power Competition, and decision support for robust policies. His dissertation focuses on integrated application of simulation and optimization tools to analyzing competition under deep uncertainty and supporting robust policy-making in addressing hybrid warfare and Gray Zone challenges. His previous work at UCLA's Luskin Center for Innovation includes economic impact analyses based on input-output modeling on California’s energy- and climate-related policies.
Dissertation Topic
Simulating Competition Under Deep Uncertainty for Robust Decisions in Hybrid Warfare and Great Power Competition
Faculty Advisors
Tim Marler (chair), Robert Lempert, Justin Grana, Michael Noonan (external committee member)
Related Links
View David's RAND bio, commentaries, and publications
SoHyun Sabrina Lee
SoHyun Sabrina Lee (she/her) is completing her dissertation on teacher well-being using both survey and multiple-case study methods at a collection of community schools in a California district, with the goal of providing recommendations for community schools and a toolkit for assessing community assets and needs through a teachers’ perspective.
Her RAND research has also focused on curriculum development, social-emotional learning, early childhood education, international teacher preparation programs, organizational capacity, and more. She has worked on data from the American Educator Panels, including the American Instructional Resource Surveys and the American Mathematics Educator Study, and helped conduct research for the High-Quality Instructional Materials and Professional Development Network from the Council of Chief State School Officers. She holds a B.S. in microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics with a minor in education from UCLA, and an M.Ed. in urban education, also from UCLA.
Dissertation Topic
Exploring Teachers' Occupational Well-Being in Community Schools
Faculty Advisors
Susan Bush-Mecenas (Chair), Isaac Opper, James Bridgeforth
Related Links
