Research Scientist at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)

Job Summary

• The Research Scientist is a member of Innovations for Poverty Action’s Applied Research & Methods (ARM) team, which designs and leads technical research for IPA’s global program portfolio with a focus on randomized controlled trials (RCTs), quasi-experimental impact evaluations, and survey methodology.
• ARM research scientists work closely with IPA’s country offices and advisory units on monitoring, evaluation, and learning.
• The current opening is for a health-focused Research Scientist.
• The person in this role designs and leads coverage surveys and program audits for a large-scale infectious disease prevention program in Sub-Saharan Africa, combining technical survey design, health systems expertise, and field research management to generate credible, timely evidence for program partners and funders.
• The role carries intellectual leadership of coverage surveys, data audits, and impact evaluations focused primarily on malaria prevention interventions, along with other health policies and programs across Sub-Saharan Africa.
• The Research Scientist will also develop, raise grants for, and execute a research agenda around high-impact health interventions and related strategies to improve the lives of people living in poverty in low- and middle-income countries.

Responsibilities
Survey Design and Technical Leadership:

• Design coverage survey protocols and audit methodologies, including sampling strategy, questionnaire design, and quality control procedures.
• Serve as principal investigator for evaluations, surveys, data audits, and efforts to extract, validate, and interpret health facility-level data.
• Provide technical guidance on health systems context in Nigeria and other West African countries, including health facility operations and data quality constraints.

Partner Engagement and Reporting:

• Collaborate with the Survey Delivery Unit on data collection platforms, field protocols, and quality assurance procedures.
• Manage relationships with government health partners and program stakeholders to secure access and support for data collection activities.
• Contribute to analysis and reporting of survey and audit results for program partners and funders.

Team Supervision and Research Development:

AcademicConferences & Publications

• Supervise and mentor field research staff, including enumerators, field coordinators, and research associates.
• Write proposals for new research, including study design, budgets, and funder-facing narrative.
• Conduct technical quality review of proposals for new research studies.

Qualifications
Required:

• PhD or equivalent in epidemiology, biostatistics, public health, health economics, or related social science.
• Substantive expertise in health systems, including how health facilities operate, the quality and limitations of facility-level data, and methods for working with facility staff to extract and validate data.
• Demonstrated experience conducting research or fieldwork in Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Experience writing research proposals, including study design and budgeting.

Desired:

• Expertise in malaria or other infectious disease programs, particularly in the context of research and data.
• Expertise in measurement and data issues related to nutrition, water and sanitation, and other public health topics such as vaccination coverage and attitudes, reproductive health, and family planning.
• Knowledge of health systems in Nigeria or other West African countries.
• Experience working in Nigeria or the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
• Training and hands-on experience in field survey methods, including sampling design.
• Experience managing culturally diverse research teams.
• Ability to design and implement randomized controlled trials (RCTs).
• Publications in public health, malaria, measurement, or survey research methods.
• Experience teaching or leading workshops on measurement, sampling, or monitoring and evaluation.
• Ability to contribute to growing the health portfolio at IPA by building and strengthening connections to partners and funders.
• French language proficiency.