J-PAL Title: Manager in Research, Education, and Training
Exceptional candidates with more than the required job experience may be considered for a role as Senior Manager.
Reports To: Director of Research, Education, and Training, J-PAL Global
Employer: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Location: Cambridge, MA, USA
Start Date: earliest possible, ideally before June 2020
Length of Commitment: Two years or more
Education: Minimum Masters degree, PhD strongly preferred
Experience: 4+ years of relevant experience with a Masters degree, 0-2 years of relevant experience with a PhD including teaching and research experience during graduate school.
Special Note: This position is not eligible for any type of visa sponsorship.
We are hiring a Manager for our Research team within J-PAL Global’s Research, Education, and Training (RET) group. Our team of 14, including five economics and political science PhDs, cares deeply about research transparency, data quality, and new methods in RCT and social science research. We are always looking for ways to improve current research and data collection practices and creating tools and materials that help others who conduct RCTs.
In this role, you will be responsible for our research transparency and RCT methods portfolio, which includes operating the AEA Social Science Registry, publishing RCT data on the Harvard dataverse, creating and publishing a new RCT data catalog, and tracking affiliates’ research publications. These projects contribute in important ways to the transparency, accessibility, and efficiency of research. The registry creates a record of the universe of RCTs being conducted, while the aim of the data catalog project is to create a central record that makes RCT data findable, filterable, and optimally accessible for secondary research. You will work with other staff to survey how RCT data is used in secondary research projects, and how we can support such research. This work includes surveying users about what types of projects they do with RCT data, thinking about the properties of RCT data, and reading associated research papers; with the aim of creating better ways of searching and documenting such data sets. Through these activities, you will gain a comprehensive overview of the newest methodological and RCT research in applied economics.
In addition to the research transparency work, you will take a key role in the development of new public research resources and training materials for research staff. This includes independent work on the writing of research resources for staff, developing data analysis tools, reviewing reference and teaching materials for research staff, and developing staff training courses. You will work closely with your counterparts in our regional offices in North America, Chile, France, India, Indonesia, and South Africa as well as staff from J-PAL’s partner organizations, like Innovations for Poverty Action and the Center for Effective Global Action.
Continued experience in research is vital to successfully leading our research transparency and research training activities. Experience conducting RCT or related research in a relevant field is required. PhD-level candidates may spend up to 25 percent of their time on independent original research that involves randomized evaluations. Research collaborations with other RET staff are encouraged. All RET staff have the opportunity to attend MIT Economics seminars, lunch talks, and research teas, and interact frequently with faculty affiliates, full-time research staff, and postdoctoral associates. You can take classes at MIT, and participate in a range of professional development opportunities, such as attending conferences.
Your responsibilities will include:
· Oversee our portfolio of research transparency activities and represent J-PAL’s research transparency work;
· Develop and pursue a funding strategy in cooperation with J-PAL leadership, write grants, and oversee the reporting on the Research group’s funded activities to sponsors;
· Think systematically about RCT data, its properties, and how it is used, such as by surveying users and reading associated research papers, and use this to lead the creation of a “metadata” catalog for published RCT data;
· Oversee the documentation and preparation of research datasets for publication, including gathering “metadata” used in methods research, and building tools that streamline and facilitate these tasks for our research partners;
· Lead the development of new tools for J-PAL research projects (such as the development of code, packages, programs, etc.) that increase the efficiency of research staff;
· Research and design new teaching modules and prepare presentations, case studies, and manuals to train researchers, research staff, and policymakers on randomized evaluation methods and the responsible use of data in research;
· Teach lectures and modules in J-PAL courses domestically and internationally;
· Carry out or contribute to original research projects related to applied microeconomics, policy, poverty alleviation, or randomized evaluation and methods of causal inference.
· Other assignments as needed as the position grows.
Skills and qualifications:
- Education: A PhD in economics, political science, education, public policy, or other related fields. Significant training in and a strong technical understanding of randomized impact evaluations is necessary. Exceptional candidates with a Masters degree may be considered.
- Experience: 1-2 years of relevant experience with a PhD (including up to one year of full time equivalent teaching and research experience during graduate school). 4+ years of relevant experience with a Masters degree. Clear evidence of experience with rigorous quantitative data analysis and direct involvement in research is required. You should be comfortable with presenting to technical and non-technical audiences and preparing tailored teaching materials. Experience in conducting field research in developing countries with a background in randomized evaluations is required. Experience in management and collaboration in international teams is a plus. Candidates with more than two years of experience post PhD may be considered for an Senior Manager position.
- Interest in Development and Policy: Strong interest in poverty alleviation policy and research, as demonstrated by coursework and research and teaching experience. International development experience or extensive experience in social policy in other settings is desired.
- Quantitative skills: Knowledge of data management, data analysis, and econometrics is required.
- Software: PowerPoint and Excel required; must have good command of Stata, or have knowledge of R, Python, or other analytics programs plus the ability and willingness to quickly learn Stata. Julia, Matlab, Github, ArcGis, and other packages are a plus.
Benefits
As a member of the MIT community, you benefit from more than just your salary.J-PAL hires highly qualified staff and rewards them accordingly. Total compensation packages are competitive for the non-profit international development field with excellent MIT benefits, including comprehensive health insurance, a 401(k) match and pension-based retirement plan, tuition assistance, commuter benefits, MIT community discounts, a generous vacation policy, and more. We like working at MIT and think you will too.
To apply:
Please submit an academic writing sample, an academic CV or a resume, and a cover letter, and name up to three references. The cover letter should discuss your fit for and interest in the position and J-PAL, and indicate the desired level of appointment. A Stata or R programming sample from a recent research project and concrete examples of field research experience are desirable. The position is subject to funding. Application review will begin November 30, but the role remains open for new applications until filled. We may conduct the first interview round at the ASSA or remotely. Please contact Anja Sautmann, Director of Research, Education, and Training (asautmann@povertyactionlab.org), for questions about the role.