Postdoc: Kenya Life Panel Study

Description

The Center for Effective Global Action (CEGA), headquartered at the University of California, Berkeley, seeks an outstanding Postdoctoral Scholar (postdoc) to support research projects in development economics in Kenya. The primary goal of this agenda is to assess the longer-term impact of interventions for poverty alleviation and to use data collected as part of these studies in creative ways to further scientific knowledge. The studies seek to publish credible, rigorous research findings in leading academic journals, and create actionable evidence for policymakers. 

This will include the Kenya Life Panel Study—a series of evaluations exploring the health, educational, and economic impacts of mass school-based deworming interventions in rural Kenya. The postdoc will report to CEGA’s co-Faculty Director Edward Miguel, and collaborate closely with CEGA Staff Scientist Michael Walker. There will be opportunities to assist with other Kenya-based projects of Professor Miguel and Dr. Walker. 

Key Responsibilities

The postdoc will collaborate with Professor Miguel, Michael Walker, and co-investigators in economics, demography, health, and political science from CEGA’s academic network on research projects based in Kenya. These projects typically involve original data collection, and the postdoc will collaborate in the design, analysis, and management of data collection. 

A core responsibility will be contributing to KLPS. In particular, they will contribute to the development of a new survey measuring the living standards, labor market activities, and well-being of respondents in midlife, and will bring innovative ideas on topics and measurement to combine with questions from the panel fielded in previous rounds. The position will also develop statistical models and analyses using Stata, R, and other software packages, and publish the resulting findings. The postdoc will work closely with and support a team of 5-10 research associates and student researchers, providing them with regular technical input and managing their workflow. The postdoc will develop strong relationships with Kenyan organizations and collaborators providing research support and data collection services, and provide oversight and advice to these organizations in meeting the objectives of the research agenda, including facilitating the use of evidence among key stakeholders. Other key responsibilities include: managing data-centric components (including analysis, review, and technical assistance) for collaborative research projects and case studies, including developing work plans and timelines to ensure that deliverables are completed on schedule; authoring research papers using empirical approaches and disseminating findings/best practices to academics, donors and policymakers through meetings and presentations; contributing to grant proposals, progress reports for current funding sources, and strategic planning and partnership development for research projects with relevant stakeholders.

The postdoc would be encouraged to spend 33% of their time on individual research pursuits.

Required qualification:

• A PhD in Economics, Statistics, Public Health, Political Science, or a related field at the time of starting the position.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Existing research agenda, with record of academic publication, related to international development, evidence aggregation, and/or the design of randomized experiments.
• 1-3 years experience conducting empirical research on development topics, with an in-depth understanding of experimental design and analysis;
• 1-3 years experience and competency with statistical software packages (Stata, R, and/or Python) and data collection platforms (e.g., SurveyCTO), and ability to render accurate statistical analysis;
• 1-3 years experience translating complex material/research to broad, non-technical audiences;
• 1-3 years experience managing large research teams;
• Ability to independently investigate solutions to technical problems;
• Outstanding written and oral communication skills, with the ability to translate complex scientific findings into accessible, non-technical language (via publications or professional presentations);
• Ability to work well with teams, and communicate effectively with colleagues and faculty.
• Ability to interact with individuals at all levels in a fast-paced environment, sometimes under pressure, while remaining flexible, proactive, tactful, resourceful, and efficient, and with a high level of professionalism and confidentiality.

Appointment Duration, Salary, and Benefits

This is a two-year full-time position with the possibility of extension pending funding. Starting annual salary for this position is set at $90,000 and standard UC Berkeley postdoc benefits will be provided.

CV, cover letter, writing sample, PhD transcript

Start Date

Flexible start date (Feb 2025-June 2025) with preference for candidates who can begin earlier.

How to Apply

Please submit the following when applying:

• CV
• Cover Letter
• Copy of Your PhD
• Writing Sample 
• 3 academic references

Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please note this position is eligible for US visa sponsorship via a J-1 academic visa.

Call for Papers for the 2025 BITSS Annual Meeting

The Berkeley Initiative for Transparency in the Social Sciences (BITSS) will hold its 13th Annual Meeting on Thursday, February 27 at UC Berkeley! This event is in-person only.

Program

The BITSS Annual Meeting brings together actors from academia, scholarly publishing, and policy to share novel research and discuss efforts to improve the credibility of social science by advancing research transparency, reproducibility, rigor, and ethics. The program will also feature presentations of meta-scientific work selected from this Call for Papers, as well as a keynote presentation.     

Call for Papers

We invite papers or long abstracts (500-1000 words) in all aspects of meta-science, including but not limited to work that assesses scientific practice, evaluates the credibility of bodies of social science literature, presents new tools or strategies to improve research transparency and reproducibility, or evaluates the effectiveness of existing tools. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Pre-registration and the use of pre-analysis plans;
• Disclosure and transparent reporting;
• Research ethics;
• Replicability and reproducibility;
• Peer review;
• Methods for detecting and reducing publication bias or data mining;
• The intersection of openness and inclusion in science;
• Assessment of the validity or reproducibility of literature;
• Meta-analysis and evidence synthesis;
• Open policy analysis;
• Transparency and reproducibility in COVID-19 or other policy-relevant research.

Eligible projects include completed works, work in progress, and prospective work. All submissions are due by Sunday, November 17, 2024 (11:59 PM Pacific Time). Notifications of acceptance will be sent by mid-December 2024.  

Contact  

Reach out to Jo Weech (jweech@berkeley.edu) with any questions about this event.

We will offer awards to support original research led by faculty at CEGA-Affiliated universities (Faculty Affiliate status for the main applicant is required). $60,000 will be made available for Faculty Affiliates in Fall 2024:

1) seed grants up to $20,000 for extensive, longer-term projects.

Proposed research must involve rigorous evaluation of programs or policies designed to alleviate poverty and promote social or economic development in low- and middle- income countries. Grant funds may be used to cover travel and lodging, data collection or access, data analysis, and related activities. Grants may not be used for researcher salaries nor for F&A/Overhead/Indirect Costs.

Researchers that have previously received CEGA funding are eligible for additional CEGA funding if they have completed requested retrospective surveys, interim and final reports, or other required deliverables.

Deadline: November 3, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific Time

Eligibility Criteria: CEGA Faculty Affiliate Status

Application Process:

Please complete the Application Form. Applications must include a proposal describing the research (no more than 2 pages) and a budget. 

We will offer two types of awards to support original research led by UC Berkeley PhD students. A total of approximately $100,000 will be made available through this competition:

(1) travel grants up to $5,000 for scoping and/or short-term fieldwork;

(2) seed grants up to $20,000 for extensive, longer-term projects.

Proposed research must involve rigorous evaluation of programs or policies designed to alleviate poverty and promote social or economic development in low- and middle- income countries. Grant funds may be used to cover travel and lodging, data collection or access, data analysis, and related activities. Grants may not be used for student payment.

Researchers that have previously received CEGA funding are eligible for additional CEGA funding if they have completed requested retrospective surveys, interim and final reports, or other required deliverables.

Deadline: November 3, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific Time

Eligibility Criteria: Doctoral students at UC Berkeley can apply.

Each application must include a nomination from a CEGA faculty affiliate sponsor. The nomination should be emailed to Sam Bordia (bordia@berkeley.edu) by the submission deadline (simply stating, "I have reviewed the proposed research and agree to nominate the applicant for this award" is adequate). 

Application Process:

Please complete the Application Form. Applications must include a proposal describing the research (no more than 2 pages) and a budget. 

We will offer two types of awards to support original research led by PhD students at CEGA-affiliated Universities (not UCB). A total of up to approximately $100,000 will be made available through this call:

(1) travel grants up to $5,000 for scoping and/or short-term fieldwork;

(2) seed grants up to $20,000 for extensive, longer-term projects.

Proposed research must involve rigorous evaluation of programs or policies designed to alleviate poverty and promote social or economic development in low- and middle- income countries. Grant funds may be used to cover travel and lodging, data collection or access, data analysis, and related activities. Grants may not be used for student payment.

Researchers that have previously received CEGA funding are eligible for additional CEGA funding if they have completed requested retrospective surveys, interim and final reports, and/or other required deliverables.

Deadline: November 3, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific Time

Eligibility Criteria: Doctoral students at CEGA-Affiliated universities that are not UC Berkeley. Each application must include a nomination from a CEGA faculty affiliate sponsor. The nomination should be emailed to Sam Bordia (bordia@berkeley.edu) by the submission deadline (simply stating, "I have reviewed the proposed research and agree to nominate the applicant for this award" is adequate). 

Application Process: Please complete the Application Form. Applications must include a proposal describing the research (no more than 2 pages) and a budget. 

Please email Sam Bordia (bordia@berkeley.edu) with any inquiries.

We offer two types of awards to support original research in Somaliland. $50,000 will be made available to all PhD Students and Faculty Affiliates at CEGA-Affiliated campuses:

(1) travel grants up to $5,000 for scoping and/or short-term fieldwork;

(2) seed grants up to $20,000 for extensive, longer-term projects.

The Pharo Foundation has generously provided funds to support original research in Somaliland. Preference will be given to proposals examining research ideas that connect to existing Pharo Foundation programs or initiatives. Specifically, CEGA and the Pharo Foundation are eager to support evaluations examining access to safe water and labor productivity in Somaliland. 

Proposed research must involve rigorous evaluation of programs or policies designed to alleviate poverty and promote social or economic development in low- and middle- income countries. Grant funds may be used to cover travel and lodging, data collection or access, data analysis, and related activities. Grants may not be used for researcher salaries nor for F&A/Overhead/Indirect Costs.

Researchers that have previously received CEGA funding are eligible for additional CEGA funding if they have completed requested retrospective surveys, interim and final reports, and/or other required deliverables.

Deadline: November 3, 2024 at 11:59 PM Pacific Time

Eligibility Criteria: Doctoral students and CEGA Faculty Affiliates can apply. For doctoral students, each application must include a nomination from a CEGA faculty affiliate sponsor. The nomination must be emailed to Sam Bordia (bordia@berkeley.edu) by the submission deadline (simply stating, "I have reviewed the proposed research and agree to nominate the applicant for this award" is adequate). 

Application Process: Please complete the Application Form. Applications must include a proposal describing the research (no more than 2 pages) and a budget. All materials must be submitted in a single PDF file through the appropriate link at our online portal, Submittable.

Please email Sam Bordia (bordia@berkeley.edu) with any inquiries.