Junior/Assistant Specialist | Kenya Life Panel Survey (KLPS)
Professor Edward Miguel and Dr. Michael Walker are hiring a Junior or Assistant Specialist to work on on the Kenya Life Panel Survey (KLPS) and/or the General Equilibrium Effects of Cash Transfers project(s).
About CEGA
The Center for Effective Global Action (CEGA) is a hub for research, training and innovation headquartered at the University of California, Berkeley. We generate insights that decision-makers can use to improve policies, programs, and people’s lives. Our best-in-class academic network includes nearly 200 faculty, 80 scholars from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)—primarily from East and West Africa—and hundreds of graduate students from diverse academic disciplines who produce rigorous evidence about what works to expand education, health, and economic opportunities for people living in poverty. Our business model involves curating policy-relevant research agendas in collaboration with development leaders, overseeing competitive grant-making to answer critical questions, investing in research capacity, and strategically connecting research and ideas to inform decision-making by governments, NGOs, and the private sector.
CEGA values diversity and seeks to include people from under-represented groups on our team. Read our values statement.
Application Review Date
The First Review Date for this job is: April 22, 2025. Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.
Applications will continue to be accepted until May 8, 2025, but those received after the first review date will only be considered if the position has not yet been filled.
About the Position
The job will entail close collaboration during all stages of empirical research with faculty members at Berkeley, working in areas of energy and environmental economics. Current projects are focused on exploring the social costs of environmental externalities such as air pollution and how regulations to limit these externalities contribute to gains and/or losses to the economy.
The Junior/Assistant Specialist will work directly with Prof. Miguel and Dr. Walker on the Kenya Life Panel Survey (KLPS) and/or the General Equilibrium Effects of Cash Transfers project(s). They will perform data cleaning, data analysis and background research such as in depth literature reviews and evidence synthesis for technical and non-technical audiences. The predoc will also support research partnership development by cultivating strong relationships with organizations providing research support and data collection services, and may have the opportunity to travel to field sites. Other key responsibilities include: providing research assistance to research projects and papers using empirical approaches; contributing to technical grant proposals, progress reports for current funding sources; and other administrative tasks related to the projects, CEGA, and the Principal Investigator(s) (PI). Predocs may also support additional research and policy efforts relevant to the goals of the PIs and CEGA. Predoc positions are ideal for graduating seniors or master’s degree students interested in pursuing a PhD in economics or related fields. In addition to working closely with faculty, candidates will have opportunities to participate in UC Berkeley’s vibrant academic life.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent international degree or enrolled in a Bacherlor’s Degree or equivalent international degree program.
Desired Qualifications
- Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent international degree in Economics, Public Policy, Political Science, Business, or related discipline.
- Strong interest in development economics, causal inference in applied microeconometrics, research design, program evaluation, cost-effectiveness analysis, and/or big data/remote sensing.
- 1-2 years experience conducting empirical research including contributing to data collection and cleaning activities.
- 1-2 years experience and competency with statistical software packages such as STATA, R, Python, Julia, and/or Matlab and ability to render accurate statistical analysis; as well as proficiency with LaTeX and Github.
- Familiarity with standard social science data sources, internet tools, and HTML.
- Familiarity working with large-scale datasets, e.g., through cloud or cluster computing.
- Ability to read and analyze published papers in economics, and accurately understand their main results.
- Outstanding written and oral communication skills, with the ability to translate complex scientific findings into accessible, non-technical language (via publications or professional presentations).
- Experience living and/or working in LMICs.
- Ability to work well with multi-national teams, and communicate effectively with colleagues and faculty.
- Additional language besides English (in particular, French, Hindi, Portuguese or Spanish).
Compensation
The current base salary range for this position is $53,100–$68,300.
Start Date & Duration
Anticipated Start Date: June 1, 2025
Initial appointment is a one-year term; reappointment is dependent upon performance, programmatic need, and budget.
Apply
To apply, submit your most recently updated CV (required), cover letter (required), and a statement of research (optional) as a single PDF.
Your cover letter should explain why your experience makes you the ideal candidate for this position, and should be no more than one page.
3-5 letters of reference required.
