WBG Pioneer - LSMS Survey Innovation Fellow

World Bank Group • Washington, DC

1d • 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.
The Development Economics Survey Unit (DECSU) in the World Bank Group’s Development Economics Vice Presidency supports the production and use of high-quality household survey data in low- and middle-income countries. Through the Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) program, DECSU advances methodological innovation in household survey design, implementation, and data quality, with a focus on improving the evidence available for development policy and research.
As part of this agenda, DECSU has implemented a study in El Salvador to estimate women’s willingness to pay for center-based childcare, examining how different service attributes shape demand. Building on prior work using discrete choice experiments (DCE) to study women's preferences in El Salvador, this study focuses specifically on childcare provision and the attributes that matter most to families, particularly mothers, when choosing whether to use and pay for formal childcare services.

Requirements

• Currently enrolled in, or in the final year of, a relevant master’s or PhD program.
• 0–3 years of relevant professional experience.
• Academic background in economics, public policy, statistics, data science, development studies, or a related field.
• Strong analytical, quantitative, research, and problem-solving skills.
• Experience or demonstrated interest in household surveys, impact evaluation, data quality, or development research.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English.
• Students may be offered a no-fee STT appointment provided that they either: (a) are enrolled in a Master's, PhD, or similar graduate program during the entire internship (or are in the fifth year or higher of a degree program in countries where higher education is not divided into undergraduate and graduate stages) and provide an official letter from their university confirming that the internship fulfills academic requirements for at least one term of study; or (b) are enrolled in undergraduate or graduate studies and receive a stipend from their university at least equivalent to the minimum STT T1 fee level in effect at the start of the assignment, as confirmed by an official university letter.

Responsibilities

• Conduct data analysis and paper writing about the study.
• Provide practical experience in survey methodology, field experiment implementation, and applied quantitative research.
• Support analyzing micro-level data.
• Contextualize findings with broader literature.
• Assist in drafting high-quality academic outputs.
• Contribute to research outputs.
• Develop an independent research question using project data, in consultation with the research team.

What This Job Offers

• Career Level: Intern