Jennifer Edwards

Jennifer Edwards is a senior researcher, scientific advisor, and program manager with over 17 years of experience supporting federal agencies, in particular the Department of Defense (DoD). She has designed and conducted mixed-method and qualitative research on topics such as gender bias, organizational culture, and workforce capabilities. Dr. Edwards has extensive experience in the evaluation of programs, policies and processes, the facilitation of interagency collaboration, problem framing, and requirements identification.

As a senior fellow with Westat Insight, Dr. Edwards leads business development and strategic planning activities for the Military and Veterans research practice area, while also providing subject matter and methodologic expertise across the company. Since she joined in 2022, she has led projects supporting DoD’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office and the Defense Health Agency.

Prior to joining Westat Insight, Dr. Edwards served as social science advisor and then as division director within the Marine Corps, leading the development of analytic capabilities for the workforce. Earlier, she served as program manager for SAIC leading social science research for DoD clients, and she worked for the Government Accountability Office. She holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Washington.