Training Associate, United States Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)



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Training Associate - J-PAL Global

Country 
United States
Education 
Bachelor's
Master's
Language Requirement 
English
Start Date 
ASAP
The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a network of affiliated professors who conduct randomized evaluations (REs). J-PAL is headquartered within the Department of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). J-PAL's mission is to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is based on scientific evidence. J-PAL works in three main areas:
  1. Conducting rigorous impact evaluations: J-PAL conducts REs to test and improve the effectiveness of programs and policies aimed at reducing poverty.
  2. Building capacity: Providing expertise for people interested in rigorous program evaluation, and offering training courses in REs.
  3. Impacting policy: Identifying the most cost-effective ways to achieve policy goals, disseminating the results of J-PAL’s research to policymakers, and promoting the scale-up of other highly effective policies and programs. 
J-PAL Global has four teams: Research, Training, Policy, and Administration/Finance.
About the position
This position is based in J-PAL Global’s Research and Training team. It will involve frequent collaboration across the other J-PAL Global teams, as well as J-PAL’s regional offices. Specific duties and responsibilities include:
  • Assist with J-PAL’s eLearning initiative. This will include developing content and managing online courses. Work independently with MITx staff, faculty members, and technical experts.
  • Support J-PAL’s in-person capacity building activities, including Executive Education courses, internal staff trainings, and custom workshops.
  • Prepare presentations, case studies, manuals and knowledge products for different  capacity building initiatives
  • Run content experiments on J-PAL MOOCs, analyze data and prepare reports for internal and external use
  • Work with J-PAL regional offices to develop and curate J-PAL’s internal stock of training resources, while providing general training support within the network.
  • Curate the Teaching Resources section of J-PAL’s website and lead the process of expanding the section.
Professional Development
The Training Group invests in your professional development. As a Training Associate, you will learn, engage, travel, and grow.
Learn: J-PAL supports a culture of learning, with opportunities to attend weekly MIT–Harvard Development Seminars and take classes for credit at MIT or elsewhere with our generous tuition assistance program. Members of the J-PAL Training team in particular must remain knowledgeable of the latest tools and techniques for teaching, learning, and research, and are therefore encouraged to enroll in online courses and other learning opportunities that build both their personal skillset, and the collective skillset of the worldwide training team and organization. All J-PAL staff are also eligible to take the innovative online MITx MicroMasters credential in Data, Economics, and Development Policy (DEDP) free of charge.
Engage: Associates have the opportunity to work with J-PAL affiliates and directors, as well as interact with MITx staff, faculty, and others. As core content creators, Associates’ presentations, case studies, and manuals are used worldwide.
Travel: Associates have the opportunity to visit J-PAL’s regional offices and other countries, for training events and workshops.
Grow: Associates can expect to join a peer group eager to build institutional knowledge and pass on lessons learned. Associates receive one-on-one mentorship from senior Group members and are eligible for internal promotion to Senior Training Associate after two to three years with J-PAL. Such promotions are based on performance and ability.
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.
Skills and qualifications 
  • Education: A Bachelor’s degree in economics, education, public policy, international development, or other related fields. Significant training in and a strong technical understanding of randomized impact evaluations is necessary.
  • Experience: At least 2-3 years of relevant economic experience is preferred, including quantitative data analysis, experience with STATA and similar tools.  Experience gained as an undergraduate can count toward this. Experience working on massive open online courses (MOOCs) and eLearning platforms is a plus.
  • Communication: Attention to detail, and writing and presentation skills for communicating across a variety of stakeholders from different teams and locations.
  • Management: Proven ability to handle several different projects/tasks at one time, successfully complete tasks assigned, and meet deadlines. A willingness to work hard, be self-motivated and learn will be essential for doing well in this position. Experience in managing projects and interacting with institutional partners strongly desired. Experience with Salesforce, or a similar database management system, is a plus.
  • Interest in Development and Policy: Strong interest in international development policy and research as demonstrated by coursework and/or study or work abroad.
  • Field Experience: Experience in conducting field research in developing countries with a background in randomized evaluations is a plus.
  • Quantitative skills: Knowledge of data management, data analysis, and econometrics are strongly desirable.
  • Software: Must know PowerPoint and Excel. Experience with R, Stata, or comparable data management software is strongly desirable. Knowledge of Python and LaTeX is a plus.
Skills and qualifications 
  • Education: A Bachelor’s degree in economics, education, public policy, international development, or other related fields. Significant training in and a strong technical understanding of randomized impact evaluations is necessary.
  • Experience: At least 2-3 years of relevant economic experience is preferred, including quantitative data analysis, experience with STATA and similar tools.  Experience gained as an undergraduate can count toward this. Experience working on massive open online courses (MOOCs) and eLearning platforms is a plus.
  • Communication: Attention to detail, and writing and presentation skills for communicating across a variety of stakeholders from different teams and locations.
  • Management: Proven ability to handle several different projects/tasks at one time, successfully complete tasks assigned, and meet deadlines. A willingness to work hard, be self-motivated and learn will be essential for doing well in this position. Experience in managing projects and interacting with institutional partners strongly desired. Experience with Salesforce, or a similar database management system, is a plus.
  • Interest in Development and Policy: Strong interest in international development policy and research as demonstrated by coursework and/or study or work abroad.
  • Field Experience: Experience in conducting field research in developing countries with a background in randomized evaluations is a plus.
  • Quantitative skills: Knowledge of data management, data analysis, and econometrics are strongly desirable.
  • Software: Must know PowerPoint and Excel. Experience with R, Stata, or comparable data management software is strongly desirable. Knowledge of Python and LaTeX is a plus.