Careers

Description:

The HaSET (“happiness” in Amharic”) Maternal and Child Health Research Program at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Boston Children’s Hospital invites applications for a Research Associate. Our program works closely with partners in Ethiopia and Ethiopia’s Federal Ministry of Health to generate evidence to improve maternal and child health programs and policies. We provide technical capacity building in program implementation, data analysis, and use of evidence through direct collaborative work and workshops. HaSET is also a member of the Bill & Melinda Gates-funded Antenatal Care/Postnatal Care Research Collective (ARC). ARC is a multi-country collaborative seeking to build a high-dimensional longitudinal clinical dataset and develop and test 1) models to predict risk and understand mechanisms of causality, 2) interventions to improve health outcomes, and 3) approaches to addressing intractable challenges across the maternal and newborn health continuum of care.

Research will be conducted jointly by the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston Children’s Hospital, St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College, the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, and other Ethiopian institutions. The Research Associate will provide research and implementation leadership for projects led by Professor Grace Chan, and will work closely with the Boston and Ethiopia teams to manage study activities. The successful candidate will oversee the technical aspects of HaSET’s research studies related to antenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal care. S/he will collaborate with the team in Ethiopia to conduct formative research, identify innovative interventions to test, design interventions, plan and monitor implementation, ensure data quality, and support data analysis and manuscript development in collaboration with the program’s data-focused Research Associate and other members of the HaSET team in Ethiopia and Boston. S/he will also contribute to grant development, engage directly with stakeholders in partner institutions and the Ethiopian Federal Ministry of Health to build consensus around studies and interventions, and collaborate with HaSET’s Program Manager on budget and timelines. The Research Associate would support supervision of trainees, research team members, and provide direct training and mentorship to Ethiopian researchers engaged in HaSET’s fellowship program. The position is based in Boston with frequent travel to Ethiopia (50% time). Commitment is for two years with the potential for renewal.

Doctoral qualification in epidemiology, public health, or a related field with 2+ years postgraduate research experience. The ideal candidate will have extensive field experience conducting research in global health, particularly in low-and-middle-income countries (LMIC).

esired skills include:

● Experience leading and implementing research in global maternal and child health, particularly in East Africa.
● Demonstrated expertise in managing field research programs and delivering results on time and within budget.
● Expertise leading applied research including the ability to generate research questions, conduct data analysis, and write up results.
● Experience training others in research methods, intervention design, and data analysis, particularly in LMIC.
● Knowledge of STATA and data systems (e.g., web-based electronic data capture system such as REDCAP or ODK).
● Capacity to manage complex relationships with program and government partners in the US and internationally.
● Experience in IRB submissions, material transfer agreements, samples storage and use agreements.
● Experience conducting mixed methods studies and qualitative data collection (e.g. in-depth interviews, focus groups, Delphi methods).
● Excellent analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
● Excellent interpersonal and oral and written communication skills.
● Experience supervising and mentoring junior researchers and staff.

Applications should include a cover letter, curriculum vitae, a statement of research, two writing samples, and three references. Contact Jenna Daniel (HaSET Program Coordinator) at jennadaniel@hsph.harvard.edu with any questions.