Global Health Fellows Program II

Data and Evaluation Intern                    

Strategic Information, Evaluation and Informatics Division, Office of HIV/AIDS, Bureau for Global Health, United States Agency for International Development

Anticipated timeframe: April/May 2018 – August/September 2018: Compensated 4 month internship

Location: Washington, DC/Arlington, VA

INT-P7-008

 

The Global Health Fellows Program (GHFP-II) is a cooperative agreement implemented and managed by the Public Health Institute in partnership with Global Health Corps, GlobeMed, Management Systems International and PYXERA Global. GHFP-II is supported by the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

 

GHFP-II’s goal is to improve the effectiveness of USAID health programs by addressing the Agency’s immediate and emerging human capacity needs. The program seeks to accomplish this goal first through the recruitment, placement and support of diverse health professionals at the junior, mid and senior levels. These program participants include fellows, interns, corporate volunteers and Foreign Service National professionals. The program then provides substantial performance management and career development support to participants, including annual working planning assistance, and ensures that professional development opportunities are available.

 

Looking to the future, GHFP-II also seeks to establish a pool of highly-qualified global health professionals that will ensure the Agency’s ongoing technical leadership and effectiveness. This objective is supported by an extensive outreach program that brings global health opportunities and specialized career advice to a diverse range of interested individuals, with a particular focus on those underrepresented in the field of global health.  

 

BACKGROUND:

The Evaluation Branch is the USAID Bureau for Global Health’s (BGH) Office of HIV/AIDS (OHA) primary vehicle for guiding and managing the design and conduct of USAID’s HIV/AIDS evaluations. Activities under design and conduct include, protocol or scope of work and standard operating procedures development, data collection and reporting, tracking, and utilization. The Evaluation Branch works closely with many divisions within OHA, PEPFAR implementing agencies and implementing partner organizations to improve evaluation policy and practice. Significant human and financial resources have been invested worldwide in conducting evaluations that aim to complement monitoring and survey data and direct future PEPFAR investments. Additional efforts are underway to effectively and efficiently guide new PEPFAR evaluation efforts and enhance evaluation data and finding’s use in decision making.

 

More information about the OHA Evaluation Branch is available here.  

 

INTRODUCTION:

In response to Government Accountability and Oversight (GAO) Agency’s assessment of the PEPFAR-funded evaluations (2012), the Office of the Global HIV/AIDS Coordinator (OGAC) issued the first version of the PEPFAR Evaluation Standards of Practice (ESoP) in 2014 and set up a data system for tracking information and quality of PEPFAR-funded evaluations. The ESoP and the data system have been updated annually since. Currently, USAID’s Evaluation Branch, in close collaboration with the Implementation Science Branch, is operationalizing the collection and codification of the PEPFAR/ USAID-funded evaluations and research studies. Furthermore, the Evaluation Branch is collaborating with the aforementioned and other USAID offices to ensure interoperability with other relevant data systems and data hubs.

 

The Data and Evaluation Intern (Intern) will contribute to building the evaluation datasets through data entry and verification of evaluation meta-data, consolidation of various data sources, harmonization and syntheses of these data. S/he will explore advantages and disadvantages of different data platforms in terms of their interoperability and capabilities to effectively support evaluation and research data tracking, data use, and data storage. The Intern will be stationed within the Strategic Information, Evaluation and Informatics (SIEI) Division in the BGH’s Office of HIV/AIDS (OHA), and the Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor in charge of evaluation and research data systems update and improvement, will serve as his/her onsite manager. S/he will work closely with other members of the Evaluation and other relevant branches within OHA and with other relevant offices and task teams.

 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Gaining experience in the field of PEPFAR evaluation and research, globally and within USAID.
• Gaining a greater understanding of PEPFAR health data systems, data use practices and other data platforms that can perform desired evaluation and research information tracking and use tasks efficiently and effectively.
  
• Gaining a greater understanding of PEPFAR and USAID Evaluation Policy and how USAID uses evaluation for program improvement, learning, and accountability.
  
• Deepening skills in collaboration and coordination within a complex organizational and implementation structure.
  
• Participating in professional development activities provided through GHFP-II and USAID (e.g. via technical presentations, meetings, etc.) as agreed upon with on site-manager (5%).

 

ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

• In coordination with OSM, collaborating with the relevant Evaluation and IS Branch members to learn about the current evaluation and research tracking systems, data sets of the PEPFAR-funded evaluation and research studies, and the desired features of the harmonized, comprehensive USAID data set on PEPFAR funded evaluation and research studies.
  
• In coordination with OSM, collaborating with staff within OHA and with the Office of Policy, Programs, and Planning (P3) to consider data platforms that would meet stakeholder needs and meet or exceed desired functionalities and standards. 

  
• With technical guidance from Sr. Technical Advisors from IS and Evaluation Branches, producing a  comprehensive and harmonized data set that includes all relevant USAID PEPFAR-funded evaluation and research studies and provides the basis for improved search and sort functions and enhanced evaluation and research findings use in decision making.
  
• Attending weekly meetings of the Evaluation Branch and participating in SIEI Division and OHA meetings, as appropriate. 

  
• Other tasks or responsibilities may be assigned based on organizational and programming need and/or the Intern’s own interests. 

  

 

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Currently enrolled master’s or other post-bachelor’s degree candidate in public health, social science or related field; or, completion of such within the past 12 months. 

  
• Demonstrated experience and interest in monitoring and evaluation within public health or international development.
  
• Demonstrated experience and versatility in data organization, data analytics and health information system development and interoperability preferred. Advanced MS Excel skills required, and familiarity with other data visualization applications such as Tableau and ArcGIS desired. 

  
• Strong written and oral communication skills 

  
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
  
• Experience working effectively in a multidisciplinary environment. 

  
• US citizenship or US permanent residency required.
  

 

COMPENSATION:

$1,826 bi-weekly (exempt, salaried position).

 

TO APPLY:

Detailed information, including an online application and instructions, is available on our website at www.ghfp.net. All applications must be submitted by November 28, 2017 at 5:00 pm eastern time.

 

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