WBG Pioneer - Development Impact Intern

World Bank Group • Washington, DC

2d • Onsite

About The Position

WBG Pioneers, the World Bank Group’s Internship Program, offers undergraduate and postgraduate students a high impact learning experience at the heart of global development. Participants gain hands on experience in a diverse and dynamic environment, contribute fresh perspectives and innovative ideas, and connect with international professionals working to end poverty on a livable planet.
DECDI generates high-quality and operationally relevant data and research to transform development policy, help reduce extreme poverty, and secure shared prosperity. It develops customized data and evidence ecosystems to produce actionable information and recommends specific policy pathways to maximize impact. DECDI works across the following World Bank sectors: Agriculture, Governance, Climate Change, Financial & Private Sector Development, Entertainment Education, Transport & Infrastructure, Social Protection & Jobs, and Fragility Conflict and Violence. DECDI establishes a research team to work on each study, which typically includes a principal investigator and co-investigators, a field coordinator based in country to support the government client, and one or more research assistants to support data cleaning, processing, and analysis.
Within DECDI, The Mind, Behavior, and Development Unit (eMBeD) offers internships that engage students in the practical application of behavioral science to tackle complex policy challenges. These opportunities provide a hands-on introduction to using behavioral insights to design, test, and refine interventions aimed at improving outcomes across DECDI. By the end of the internship, interns will develop a deep understanding of how behavioral science enhances policy effectiveness and supports equitable development, especially in resource-constrained settings.
More information can be found at http://www.worldbank.org/dime and https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/embed.

Requirements

• Be enrolled in a master's degree (or PhD) program in economics, public policy, statistics, computer science, behavioral sciences, or related field, with strong quantitative research skills is desirable
• Knowledge of programming in Stata, R, or Python for data processing and analysis is desirable, and required for certain positions
• Experience with survey programming in an ODK-based platform is desirable, and required for certain positions
• Experience with machine learning, natural language processing, Shiny dashboards, and geospatial analysis is desirable, and required for certain positions
• Experience coding in a team environment and using GitHub is highly desirable.
• Prior background in impact evaluation and econometric analysis is a plus
• Experience working in developing countries preferred and knowledge about the relevant sectors is desirable
• Demonstrated experience applying behavioral science concepts to real-world challenges, such as designing or evaluating behaviorally informed interventions or conducting behavioral diagnostics is preferred
• Prior experience in intervention design, impact evaluation, and econometric analysis is highly desirable
• Demonstrated ability and experience in designing and delivering training and capacity building activities or other teaching experience is a plus
• Superior written and oral communications skills in English is essential
• Certain positions may require fluency in other languages (such as French, Portuguese, Hindi, Swahili, Arabic
• Motivated self-starter, with demonstrated ability to work effectively and sensitively in teams, and excellent cross-cultural communication skills

Responsibilities

• Support the dissemination of impact evaluation methodology and results
• Support team members in writing well-documented, reproducible code for data cleaning, descriptive statistics, regression analysis, data visualization, and any other analysis as per project needs; and/or document all data work on the project’s GitHub repository
• Manage databases, integrating various data sources (for example, project monitoring data, administrative data from local government, and household survey data). This may require programming matching algorithms, using spatial data to create linkages, performing manual matching, and linking up with field staff for additional information on specific tasks
• Conduct literature review and syntheses, contribute to impact evaluation reports and policy briefs, and support the design and development of concept notes, policy notes, or papers that synthesize research findings, provide actionable recommendations, and inform policymaking in relevant areas, among other writing and editing tasks
• Contribute to the development and implementation of field protocols for primary data collection and procedures and survey instruments, including field protocol, data quality protocol, recruitment of field staff, field staff training, and survey pilots
• Coordinate acquisition of secondary data, such as administrative data
• Support the development of instruments and diagnostic tools for data collection, such as focus groups, interviews, and surveys, as applicable
• Assist and support the design, implementation, and analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) using behavioral insights approaches
• Perform other related tasks, as discussed

What This Job Offers

• Career Level: Intern