Post-Doctoral Fellow - J-PAL MENA

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab Middle East and North Africa (J-PAL MENA) regional office, based at The American University in Cairo (AUC) within the School of Business, is accepting applications for a post-doctoral fellowship position. The J-PAL MENA Post-Doctoral Fellowship, which is open to recent graduates of PhD programs and junior academics, will provide opportunities to conduct randomized evaluations on topics related to development, climate change, inclusive growth, human capital and labor, and other topics in Egypt and other MENA countries. The Fellow will work in partnership with the J-PAL MENA Scientific Directors, Bruno Crepon and Adam Osman, and with J-PAL affiliated professors and J-PAL MENA Executive Director, and will contribute to development of the J-PAL MENA Research team. The J-PAL MENA Post-Doctoral Fellow will work with J-PAL affiliates and co-PIs to develop research designs, participate in field activities, contribute to managing partner relationships, and conduct data analysis. 

responsibilities

The Post-Doctoral Fellow will work full-time at J-PAL MENA. The responsibilities of the candidate will be divided as follows: 50 percent of their time will be dedicated to conducting own research projects independently or with J-PAL affiliates. As part of developing own research agenda, the Post-Doctoral fellow is expected to contribute to project development including matchmaking with potential policy partners, working on designing, setting up, and running randomized evaluations in Egypt and possibly other MENA countries.

The other 50 percent of the Post-Doctoral time will be spent on supporting J-PAL MENA research and institutional priorities. Responsibilities and activities in this area include:

• Serve as a resource for J-PAL MENA leadership on research matters and help the in the efforts towards improving the ecosystem of development research in Egypt and the MENA region;
• Support regional capacity building activities, such as serving as a trainer for J-PAL training activities targeting policy makers and helping J-PAL MENA training team in developing technical training content for introducing randomized evaluations to partner organizations and other stakeholders in Egypt and the region;
• Offer help in designing and organizing internal capacity building activities for the research staff of J-PAL MENA and for successful candidates of the forthcoming MENA Scholars Fellowship;
• Play active role in mentoring and coaching junior J-PAL MENA staff;
• Co-organize scientific research seminars, academic conferences, and workshops with the research team of J-PAL MENA both internally and in cooperation with other research institutions;
• Support the J-PAL MENA team in different research activities related to the Egypt Impact Lab;
• Facilitate connections between the research and university networks at J-PAL and universities in the MENA region;
• Provide technical oversight on project implementation in the field;
• Write drafts and reports and help the J-PAL MENA team in developing and preparing different materials related to research development, evidence dissemination, and policy outreach.

The Post-Doctoral Fellow will be supervised by the J-PAL MENA Executive Director and advised by the J-PAL MENA Scientific Directors. 

Benefits

J-PAL MENA hires highly qualified staff. Total compensation packages are competitive for the academic field, including comprehensive health insurance, and vacations as per the AUC policies.

Qualifications

• Applicants should have a PhD in the field of Economics, Public Policy, or a related field
• Demonstrated interest in conducting high-quality research and impact evaluations, particularly randomized evaluations
• Prior research experience on topics related to development economics/public policy is required
• Fellows must be willing to be based in Cairo, travel within the MENA region and/or occasionally to the field outside of Cairo, including rural areas of Egypt on fieldwork
• Applicants of any nationality are eligible to apply; preference for junior scholars from the MENA region or Egypt specifically