Training and Education Associate - J-PAL Latin America and the Caribbean

About J-PAL LAC:

J-PAL LAC is a non-profit research center that aims to reduce global poverty by generating rigorous scientific evidence on which social programs and policies can make a real difference in people's lives. Formed by a network of more than 1,100 researchers at universities around the world, J-PAL measures the impact of programs with randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and uses these results to influence the design of public policies. The J-PAL network has conducted evaluations across dozens of countries, organized in 11 sectors. In Latin America, J-PAL LAC supports a growing portfolio of evaluations across the region.

J-PAL organizes its work into three main areas:

• Research: We partner with donors to create initiatives that fund research. We also implement RCTs from data collection to data analysis.
• Public policy: We summarize the results of the investigation, create alliances, and provide technical assistance to governments.
• Training: We lead executive training and develop rigorous online education to build regional knowledge.

The local grounding of J-PAL is essential for its success. The seven regional J-PAL offices are located at leading universities on five continents. In Latin America and the Caribbean, J-PAL LAC is headquartered at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UC Chile). J-PAL LAC also has a Memorandum of Understanding with Insper for work in Brazil and the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala for work in Central America.

In 2019, J-PAL founders Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee won the Nobel Prize in Economics for their experimental approach to alleviating poverty.

Our Office:

J-PAL LAC is based at UC Chile in Santiago, where most of our staff is located. We also have a team in São Paulo based at Insper, teams in Guatemala and Mexico, and project staff in several LAC countries. We strive for a collegiate, horizontal, and amicable culture where peers can learn from each other and are not afraid to innovate. The office is led by Executive Director Paula Pedro, originally from Brazil, and Deputy Executive Director Claudia Macías, originally from Mexico.

Our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion:

Embracing diversity, equity, and inclusion is essential to address poverty's complex causes and consequences. To advance our mission, J-PAL LAC must draw on diverse experiences from our staff and affiliated researchers to ask better questions and identify better solutions. We are committed to self-reflection, learning, and dialogue to nurture understanding across differences. Together, we will build an equitable, inclusive culture where everyone is respected, empowered, and heard.

About the Project:

The Training and Education team at J-PAL LAC is dedicated to building capacities and fostering collaboration across different stakeholders to enhance better producers and users of evidence. The vertical equips learners and partners with skills in impact evaluation, data analysis, and economics applied to social programs, and plays a pivotal role in coordinating training and technical assistance needs with other areas and projects at J-PAL LAC.

The team's main activities include: fostering capacity development for evaluation and evidence use across LAC tailoring and crafting content and capacity-building solutions that resonate with partner needs harnessing J-PAL's online courses in Spanish and English and contributing to education programs and initiatives at J-PAL globally.

As part of this work, J-PAL LAC is implementing a capacity-building agenda at the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala (UVG), which includes alignment with the Alliance for Data, Evaluation, and Policy Training (ADEPT), and other well-defined training and education programs, such as the Diploma J-PAL / UC. This agenda will be connected to our current initiative in Guatemala: Growing Futures.

The Growing Futures initiative focuses on improving early childhood development while linking it with social protection, health, education, and efforts to improve family livelihoods, including generating evidence on how to improve service delivery so that programs effectively reach intended populations.

The capacity-building agenda will work with three main stakeholders that are relevant for the Initiative and the J-PAL activities in Guatemala:

1) Reform entrepreneurs from the government or NGOs that implement or will implement social programs and that would benefit from the evidence-informed approach.

2) Interdisciplinary academics at UVG that could eventually participate in J-PAL projects or activities.

3) UVG students that could participate more actively in J-PAL projects or eventually follow a path in development economics in their professional careers.

The ADEPT is a global network of universities and partners committed to training the next generation of researchers and decision-makers. Convened by J-PAL and Community Jameel, ADEPT supports member institutions to develop new academic programs in policy evaluation and data analysis, and to integrate the MITx MicroMasters in Data, Economics, and Design of Policy (DEDP) into their academic offerings. The DEDP MicroMasters is a rigorous, fully online graduate-level program developed by J-PAL and MIT Economics, with over 350,000 learners worldwide.

The Training & Education Associate based in Guatemala will be the local focal point for this implementation, combining T&E team-wide responsibilities with the specific demands of the capacity-building agenda of Growing Futures and the ADEPT-UVG partnership.

Summary of the Role:

The Training & Education Associate will serve as J-PAL LAC's local focal point at UVG for the implementation of the ADEPT agenda. The position combines institutional relationship management with hands-on coordination of training activities - bridging J-PAL's global ADEPT strategy with UVG's academic environment. The Associate will be responsible for embedding ADEPT tools and resources into UVG's institutional structures and for delivering and supporting local capacity-building activities in policy evaluation and data analysis. In addition, The Training & Education Associate will support the planning, coordination, and implementation of training courses and education activities at J-PAL LAC, with a focus on strengthening the use and generation of evidence in public policy and organizational decision-making. The role involves working closely with internal teams and external partners to deliver training workshops, courses, and capacity-building initiatives, as well as contributing to the development of learning materials aligned with J-PAL's training standards.

Responsibilities:

• Education Programs and Academic Partnerships
  • With supervision of the Training and Education Manager, serve as the primary liaison between J-PAL LAC and UVG for the implementation of ADEPT and related capacity-building activities.
  • Support the development and maintenance of working relationships with faculty, administrators, students, and academic leadership to advance J-PAL's educational agenda at UVG.
  • Support the integration and uptake of the DEDP MicroMasters credential into UVG's admissions and academic recognition processes and identify synergies with other J-PAL education programs, including the UC/J-PAL Diploma in Impact Evaluation.
  • Coordinate workshops, seminars, learner support activities, and regular planning and monitoring processes related to ADEPT and the Growing Futures initiative.
• Training & Capacity Building
  • With supervision of the Training and Education Manager, coordinate and support the delivery oftraining courses, workshops, and capacity-building initiatives for internal and external audiences.
  • Develop and adapt learning materials, tools, knowledge products aligned with J-PAL's training standards.
  • Contribute to strengtheningpartner engagement with evidence and data by facilitating collaboration across J-PAL teams and external stakeholders.
  • Contribute to the design and improvement of processes, tools, and strategies that promote evidence-informed decision-making across projects and partners.
• Administrative & Operational Support
  • Maintain records of activities, participants, and outcomes in coordination with J-PAL LAC's monitoring systems.
  • Prepare activity reports, meeting notes, and progress updates for internal and external stakeholders.
  • Coordinate logistics for training events, including venue, materials, participants, and communications.

Qualifications:

• Education: A bachelor's or master's degree in education, economics, public policy, social sciences, or a related field.
• Experience: At least two years of professional experience in training, education, capacity-building, or a related field. Experience working with academic institutions or international development organizations is a plus.
• Languages: Professional proficiency in both Spanish and English is required, written and spoken.
• Technical skills: Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Workspace applications, particularly Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Impact evaluation: Basic familiarity with impact evaluation methodologies is required.

An ideal candidate will demonstrate:

• Strong interpersonal and relationship-management skills, with the ability to work effectively with academic institutions and diverse stakeholders
• Strong organizational and analytical skills, with the ability to manage multiple workstreams and deliver on time
• Clear written and verbal communication in both English and Spanish
• Proactive, self-directed work style suited to a role with significant autonomy
• Genuine interest in training, education, capacity-building, evidence-based policy, or international development
• Alignment with J-PAL's mission and interest in initiatives aimed at improving lives through evidence

Work Permissions:

This position is open to citizens or foreigners with valid work permits in Guatemala at the time of applying for this vacancy.

Some schedule flexibility may be required for coordination with J-PAL LAC (UTC-3) and the ADEPT global team. Work permit in Guatemala required at the time of application.

Location:

Guatemala City, Guatemala. The position is fully on-site. Some schedule flexibility may be required for coordination with J-PAL LAC (UTC-3) and the ADEPT global team.