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Duolingo

Senior Psychometrician

🇺🇸 Hybrid - New York, NY

🕑 Full-Time

💰 $140K - $165K

💻 Data Science

🗓️ July 18th, 2025

Psychometrics Python PyTorch

Edtech.com's Summary

Duolingo is hiring a Senior Psychometrician to join their research team and contribute to the development and operational excellence of the Duolingo English Test. The role involves collaborating with scientists, engineers, and designers to apply advanced psychometric and computational methods, develop AI-enhanced assessment tools, and communicate findings through reports and presentations.

Highlights
  • Collaborate with assessment scientists, engineers, and designers to apply psychometric principles to novel assessment instruments.
  • Develop computational psychometric methods including adaptive algorithms, item response theory models, and AI scoring systems.
  • Build software to monitor and ensure the quality and fairness of algorithms, including machine learning models.
  • Utilize AI tools for research synthesis, test item prototyping, code development, and feature extraction.
  • Communicate results via blogs, dashboards, technical reports, conferences, and journals, leveraging AI for writing and visualization.
  • Requires a PhD in a quantitative field like educational measurement, psychometrics, statistics, data science, or AI and 3–5 years post-PhD experience in education-related fields.
  • Strong publication record in psychometrics and educational measurement is mandatory.
  • Proficiency with open-source data science tools such as R and Python is essential.
  • Experience with AI frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow, Hugging Face) and familiarity with adaptive test design and machine learning in education are pluses.
  • Salary range: $140,300–$165,000 USD, with additional equity and benefits.

Senior Psychometrician Full Description

Our mission at Duolingo is to develop the best education in the world and make it universally available. It’s a big mission, and that’s where you come in!

At Duolingo, you’ll join a team that cares about educating our users, experimenting with big ideas, making fact-based decisions, and finding innovative solutions to complex problems. You’ll have limitless learning opportunities and daily collaborations with world-class minds — while doing work that’s both meaningful and fun.

Join our life-changing mission to develop education for our half a billion (and growing!) learners around the world. 
Read our blog to learn more.

About the role...
Our mission at Duolingo is to develop the best education in the world and make it universally available. But we’ve got more left to do — and that’s where you come in!

Duolingo is the world's most popular learning app. Beyond our core learning product, we also offer English proficiency testing with the Duolingo English Test, and are bringing new subjects into the Duolingo app, where people can develop their Math and Music skills.
We are passionate about educating our users, making fact-based decisions, and finding innovative solutions to complex problems. We offer meaningful work, limitless learning opportunities, and collaboration with world-class minds. Come brighten your life and over half a billion more!

Duolingo is looking for an outstanding authority in psychometrics with elite knowledge of psychometric techniques as well as the desire and ability to support foundational research and operational excellence for the Duolingo English Test. You will join Duolingo’s growing research team and contribute to agile, ongoing development of the test, aiding our efforts to advance Duolingo’s mission through science.

You will...
  • Collaborate with dedicated assessment scientists, engineers, and designers to apply psychometric operational excellence principles to innovative and novel assessment instruments
  • Develop and apply computational psychometric methods for high-quality language assessments, such as adaptive assignment algorithms, explanatory item response theory (IRT) models, and AI-enhanced scoring systems.
  • Build software that monitors and ensures the continued quality and fairness of underlying algorithms, including those powered by machine learning.
  • Use AI tools to synthesize research, prototype new test items, assist with code development, and enhance feature extraction pipelines.
  • Communicate findings through blogs, dashboards, technical reports, conference presentations, and peer-reviewed journals, potentially using AI to accelerate writing and visualization workflows.
 
You have...
  • 3–5 years of post-PhD experience working in an education-related field.
  • PhD in a quantitative field (such as educational measurement, psychometrics, statistics, data science, or artificial intelligence).
  • A strong research publication record in psychometrics, educational measurement
  • Outstanding interpersonal, communication, and organizational skills for effective collaboration across AI and assessment domains.
  • Evidence of innovation in psychometric research or analysis, particularly in leveraging AI or computational methods.
  • Excellent skills in open-source data science tools, such as R and Python
  • Desire to make the world a better place through technology
  • Ability to relocate or work in the Pittsburgh, PA office.
 
⭐  Exceptional candidates will have...
  • Experience with the design, development, and analysis of computer-adaptive tests and data-driven assessments.
  • A deep understanding of psychometric modeling techniques, along with hands-on experience applying machine learning and natural language processing (NLP) techniques to educational data.
  • Familiarity with how AI can support item development, automated scoring, and test integrity monitoring.
  • Familiarity with AI frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, TensorFlow, Hugging Face) is a plus.
  • An open mind toward the creative integration of AI and traditional psychometric practices, and a passion for improving global access to high-quality assessment.

We post a multi-level salary range for all of our roles.
This is not inclusive of the rest of our awesome portfolio that includes equity compensation and world-class benefits. Our salary ranges are the same for all US locations. Your recruiter can share more details about the range for a specific level during the hiring process. The actual salary within the range is determined by many factors including but not limited to, skills, experience, education, and internal equity.

Salary Range: 
$140,300—$165,000 USD

Take a peek at how we care for our employees' holistic well-being with our benefits here.
We will do everything we can within reason to make sure that your interview takes place in an environment that fairly and accurately assesses your skills. If you need assistance or accommodation, please contact accommodations@duolingo.com.

Duolingo is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.
By applying for this position your data will be processed as per the Duolingo Applicant Privacy Notice.