Senior Research Associate at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)

Job Description

Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)

Senior Research Associate,  Rwanda

• Location:  Kigali, Rwanda
• Deadline to apply:   5 PM 20 ^{t h}   April 2023, applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis
• Length of Commitment:  1-year renewable
• Desired start date:  ASAP
• Reports to:   Research and Policy Manager/Associate Research Manager

Application materials:   All applicants must complete and submit their resume and cover letter to the address indicated below .

Innovations for Poverty Action was established in Rwanda in 2013 and has 10 active projects spanning across Education, Agriculture, Finance and Health. With 15 full time staff, a network of part-time field numerators of over 300, IPA Rwanda predominantly implements Randomized Control Trails in collaboration with leading Rwandan and international academics, the Government of Rwanda and other development NGOs to evaluate the impact of new development concepts to help inform future government policy and development projects.

Summary 

The Senior Research Associate(SRA) will have an exciting opportunity to participate in design and implementation of multiple process evaluations to drive program improvements through testing innovative interventions  on the best ways to implement teacher performance contracts that align with learning outcomes, to generate evidence of the value of taking these to scale.

This role administratively reports internally to IPA Rwanda’s Research and Policy Manager  and will receive day-to-day technical oversight from partners at Georgetown University, including a Primary Investigator. The SRA will perform a variety of tasks including, but not limited to: designing survey questionnaires, managing survey teams, conducting quantitative and qualitative research, cleaning data and assisting in preliminary analysis, assisting in the writing of project reports and action-oriented presentations to partners, and coordinating with key government and NGO partners.

Responsibilities 

In details, the Senior Research Associate will be responsible of the following:

• Liaise with Principal Investigators and Research Manager in the design of survey questionnaires
• Work with the data manager and principal Investigator to program survey tools using SurveyCTO, high-frequency checks and data flows
• Develop data collection protocols and data quality assurance protocol
• Develop a data collection plan (procurement, logistics and route plan) that ensures adherence to data collection budget
• Manage the project budget, tracking expenses and adhering to the project budget,
• Supervise training of team leaders, auditors and surveyors
• Conduct daily data quality checks
• Ensure implementation of survey spot checks and back-checks
• Compile clean databases
• Assist the PI team in data analysis as requested
• Assisting in managing relationships with donors, partner organizations and researchers
• Produce technical reports for donor and/or other stakeholders (e.g. fieldwork reports)
• Keep the Research and Policy Manager and the PI team appraised of all project activities
• Training and managing a survey team that conduct surveys among study unit.
• Writing regular progress reports,
• SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES: Designated Project Field Managers, and overall oversight of the Field Officers

Qualifications

Education and/or Work Experience Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural or Educational Economics, Social Sciences, Public Policy, Statistics or related fields, Master’s degrees are preferred.
• Experience conducting social science or economic field research. Background in randomized control trials is strongly preferred;
• Experience supervising data collection and teams of field workers, designing surveys and implementing programs strongly preferred
• Experience with data management and econometrics. Strong quantitative skills and advanced knowledge of Stata strongly preferred
• Experience with electronic data collection platforms. Knowledge of SurveyCTO a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to manage high-level relationships with partner organizations.
• Experience working with government officials, especially in Rwanda is also a plus.
• Excellent management and organizational skills along with strong quantitative skills
• Flexibility, self-motivation, the ability to manage multiple tasks efficiently as a team player
• Ability to work a culturally diverse team and maintain high professional standards
• Strong written and oral communication skills and complete fluency in English and Kinyarwanda is required

Preferred

• Experience living in a developing country is a strong plus.
• Knowledge of Stata (strongly preferred) or other data analysis software.
• Experience with quantitative and qualitative research methods.
• Familiarity with randomized controlled trials.

Method of Application

Submit your CV and Application on Company Website : Click Here
Closing Date : 30th March, 2023.