Job Opportunity for Research Associate – Hippocampus learning (HLC) at Poverty Action Lab

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of over 260 affiliated professors at universities around the world, J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty. J-PAL South Asia, based at the Institute for Financial Management and Research in India, leads JPAL’s work in the South Asia region. J-PAL South Asia conducts randomized evaluations, builds partnerships for evidence-informed policymaking, and helps partners scale up effective programs. Over more than ten years of existence, J-PAL South Asia has conducted 193 ongoing and completed randomized evaluations. 

About the position 

J-PAL South Asia at the Institute for Financial Management and Research seeks qualified applicants for the position of Research Associate to lead impact evaluations in India. The position offers an opportunity to gain first-hand field management experience in an organization undertaking cutting-edge development research. The Research Associate will join a team of world class researchers from leading universities in the world and will gain first-hand experience implementing randomized control trials in an organization undertaking cutting-edge development research. Read more about our work and projects here. This position will involve overseeing a third endline of an experiment designed to measure the effect of attending kindergarten on children’s development. In 2016 the project randomized scholarships to attend a franchise of kindergartens across rural Karnataka. Since that time, we have assessed the development of the children once at the end of two years of kindergarten and once at the end of grade one. We are now planning to return in the spring of 2022 to assess the children again to measure whether the effects have endured or not. The research associate will be based in Bangalore and will work closely with the PIs (Seema Jayachandran at Northwestern University and Joshua Dean at The University of Chicago). The role will first be focused piloting and developing new assessments that are age appropriate. Next the research associate will oversee the endline and conduct preliminary data analysis. The ideal candidate will demonstrate the management skills required for these tasks and have experience working with children. 

Key Responsibilities

Research Associates work closely with academic researchers and other field staff to perform a variety tasks including, but not limited to: 

• Designing survey questionnaires, conducting qualitative research, running pilot exercises, refining study design and survey instruments 
• Managing teams: Recruit, train, and supervise both field-based and data operations teams consisting of project assistants, field managers, field-based surveyors, data entry operators and other field and office staff 
• Supervising data collection and data entry to ensure good data quality during both these phases 
• Co-ordinating with the Administrative and Finance team on a variety of tasks related to field staff contracting and payments 
• Overseeing the implementation of the evaluation in accordance to the research design in association with our partner organization 
• Ensuring that the project complies with IRB and JPAL data collection and security protocols with the help of the Research Manager 
• Maintaining relationship with partner organizations at both headquarters and field levels 
• Assisting with data cleaning and preliminary data analysis 
• Assisting in preparation of documents and presentations for donor reporting as well as dissemination activities 
• Reporting to PIs on all of the above mentioned activities 
• Any other task as assigned by the Research Manager, AD Research or ED 

Desired Qualifications 

• A Bachelor’s/Master’s degree in economics, social sciences, public policy, education or related fields 
• Experience living in a developing country is a strong plus 
• Previous experience in development research preferred 
• Excellent management and organizational skills along with strong quantitative skills 
• Fluency and excellent communication skills in English 
• Some conversational-level skills in regional languages such as Hindi, Tamil, Kannada etc. 
• Flexible, self-motivating, able to manage multiple tasks efficiently, and team player 
• Demonstrated ability to manage high-level relationships with partner organizations 
• Knowledge of Stata (strongly preferred) or other data analysis software is preferred 
• Familiarity with randomized controlled trials/clinical trials/quasi-experiments preferred 
• Ability to deal with unstructured and changing environments 
• Ability to work independently and in rural field locations Note on Work Authorizations:
• Candidates must have work authorization to work in India

How to Apply

Complete the J-PAL/IPA common application. After completing a brief registration, choose the Research job category, then select “Research Associate HLC, J-PAL South Asia” and include a resume, cover letter, transcripts, and two recommendation letters. 

Note that applications with incomplete submissions will not be considered. You are able to submit your application before your references complete their recommendation letters; however, you must include their contact information before submitting your application. 

Given the volume of applications received, only short-listed candidates will be contacted for an interview.