Data Analyst Intern – J-PAL South Asia

J-PAL South Asia, a regional office of J-PAL, is based at the Institute for Financial Management and Research in India and leads J-PAL’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. We have a growing number of partnerships in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. In 2011, we were selected to host the South Asia Center for CLEAR, a global initiative coordinated by the World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group. Under this initiative, we host a knowledge sharing roundtable series and equip practitioners with the expertise to carry out rigorous evaluations through training courses, advisory services, and joint research projects.

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL), based at the Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) in India, is a global research centre co-founded by Nobel laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee. J-PAL’s mission is to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy making is based on scientific evidence, and research is translated into action. We do this through three main activities:

• Conducting rigorous impact evaluations: J-PAL’s network of 261 affiliated professors around the world conduct randomized evaluations, or RCTs, to test and improve the effectiveness of programs and policies aimed at reducing poverty.
• Policy outreach: J-PAL’s policy team builds longstanding partnerships with policymakers and disseminates research results to facilitate the journey from evidence to policy, and ensure effective programs achieve impact at scale.
• Capacity building: J-PAL equips public and private sector practitioners with the expertise to carry out their own rigorous evaluations through training courses and joint research projects.

J-PAL recently launched the Innovations in Data and Experiments for Action (IDEA) Initiative to facilitate the access and use of data collected routinely by government agencies for evidence-based decision-making. These administrative datasets hold tremendous potential and, given the right approach, can be leveraged to better allocate resources, measure success, and improve the efficiency of government programs. The IDEA Lab at J-PAL South Asia is recruiting

Data Analysis Interns to support its on-going data usage and capacity building partnerships with various state governments across India.

Education: Bachelor’s
Start Date (Earliest): 1 February 2023
Length of Commitment: Less than one year

Responsibilities

The intern will primarily support Data Managers and Associates with the following:

• Data management for multiple small and large-scale datasets in health, education, taxation and other social sectors.
• Documentation: Systematically documenting and updating the metadata i.e. context and contents of each accessed dataset.
• Processing and analysis: Support in cleaning and analyzing data using statistical softwares/languages like R, Python or Stata.
• Visualization and reporting: Support in visualizing data in a meaningful manner and contributing to external presentations, briefs and reports.
• Research and writing: Conducting desk research on various topics and programs, or assisting with writing tasks.

Key Required Skills and Qualifications

• Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree, preferably in a quantitative field;
• Experience with importing, transforming, and maintaining datasets (either in an academic or professional setting);
• Excellent skills in data wrangling using R/Python (desired) or Stata;
• Good knowledge of data visualization principles and best practices;
• Strong analytical and data interpretation skills;
• Fluency in English;
• Good verbal, written and presentation skills.

Preferred Skills and Qualifications

• Previous knowledge or interest in global development and poverty alleviation;
• Proficiency in SQL;
• Experience with modern code management systems like GitHub;
• Familiarity working with large public datasets in the social sector, either academically or professionally.

Work Authorization Candidates must have authorization to work in India.