Mid-Level Research Specialist, USAID School to Work (STW) Transitions Study, Remote At Social Impact

Social Impact is a global development management consulting firm. We provide monitoring, evaluation, strategic planning, and capacity building services to advance development effectiveness. We work across all development sectors including democracy and governance, health and education, the environment, and economic growth. Since 1997 we have worked in over 100 countries for clients such as US government agencies, bilateral donors, multilateral development banks, foundations, and nonprofits.

Project Objective:

Under the USAID Middle East Education Research, Training and Support (MEERS) initiative, Social Impact has been commissioned to lead the School to Work (STW) Transitions Study in the MENA region. The STW study focuses on secondary schools across MENA and what is needed to prepare youth to transition into the workforce and/or continuing education. The study will examine extra-curricular and supplementary programing (career guidance, workforce development training, etc.) at the secondary school level across MENA and how interventions are, or are not, helping to prepare young people with the necessary skills, knowledge, and resources to successfully transition into work or further education.

This study is divided into three phases:

• Phase I: Development of an analytic framework around the following three key focal areas that support youths’ academic, professional/technical, and career planning/livelihood prospects. This phase has been completed.
• Phase II: Preparation of 11 country briefs summarizing the secondary school level academic, professional, and career/livelihood interventions in each country where USAID operates. This phase is ongoing.
• Phase III: A regional situational analysis addressing the study questions and focused on promising USAID and non-USAID interventions identified in the 11 Country Briefs. Selection will take into account non-USAID programming and career counseling efforts at the secondary level (for in and out of school youth ages 13-19), as well as the role of parents/guardians – which will be captured by asking intervention staff to provide examples of how parents have influenced program design and implementation and how they are otherwise engaged in interventions. The final goal is to produce lessons learned that can guide the design of future interventions. This Phase will be conducted in five steps: Intervention-focused document reviews, primary data collection, analysis, workshopping, and dissemination.

Position Description:

Social Impact is seeking a Mid-level Research Specialist to provide technical guidance in support of the third phase of the School to Work Transition Study. The Mid-level Research Specialist will have subject matter familiarity with secondary school-level programming, extra-curricular activities, and other youth development programing for younger youth. Knowledge about career guidance and general secondary school curricula, standards, and competencies would be advantageous. This is a part-time, remote consulting position from March to June 2022 requiring a total of 25 days of work.

Responsibilities:

• Lead qualitative data collection such as key informant interviews (KIIs) and assist with data analysis.
• Assist with the development of an Out-brief and Regional Trends PowerPoint presentation at the conclusion of the primary analysis.
• Support the production of a high-quality PowerPoint presentation and facilitation plan for a case study workshop to validate findings, conclusions, and lessons learned.
• Provide written contributions to the case study report and final study summary brief.
• Communicate regularly with the Team Leader, Research Specialists and other SI HQ staff to provide status updates on data collection and the production of deliverables.

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in education or another relevant field with five years of relevant work experience.
• Experience conducting qualitative data collection and analysis on donor-funded projects.
• Knowledgeable about formal and extra-curricular secondary school-level curriculum and programming in MENA countries.
• Prior experience conducting assessments, evaluations, or other research studies in the education sector for USAID.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and Arabic required.