Details

Work with Oxford development economist Dr Sanjay Jain, Dr Soumya Swaminathan, Director of MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (and former WHO Chief Scientist), and London Business School Professor Kamalini Ramdas on an exciting research project focused on improving public health delivery in Tamil Nadu, India. We are looking to hire Predoctoral Fellows (‘predocs’) and Short-Term Research Assistants (with an opportunity for extension) to work on a research project funded by the Gates Foundation, focused on trialling improved pathways to deliver routine care for diabetes and hypertension in the Tamil Nadu Public Health System. You will get to work directly with the senior project team, and you will gain invaluable research experience for a future in economics, operations research/operations management, or public health. 

About the Recruitment 

• JOBCODE: RA010425
• Candidates must have strong technical skills
• Compensation: Compensation will be competitive
• Location: MS Swaminathan Research Foundation with possibility for remote work for some roles. 

Key Responsibilities:

• Data Cleaning & Processing: Manage and clean large datasets using Python, R, STATA and LLMs.
• Fuzzy Matching: Apply advanced fuzzy matching techniques to merge datasets where exact identifiers are unavailable. 
• ARC-GIS Data Gathering and Analysis to obtain characteristics of rural and semiurban geographies. 
• Econometric & Statistical Analysis: Conduct regression analysis, instrumental variable (IV) approaches, and causal inference using STATA. 
• Data Visualization & Reporting: Generate tables, graphs, and reports for research presentations and publications. Assistance in drafting, fact-checking and proof-reading papers and developing literature reviews.

Qualifications:

• Required Education: Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Computer Science, Statistics or a related field. 
• Preferred Education: Master’s degree in Economics, Computer Science, Statistics or a related field preferred.

Experience

• Experience with statistical analysis packages such as LLMs, R, Python, or Stata 
• Experience with LLMs, including developing chatbots and doing fuzzy matching to merge datasets where exact identifiers are not available. 
• Experience with cloud computing for handling large-scale datasets. 
• Work experience in a research environment, with proven analytical and quantitative skills, is preferred

Preferred Competencies:

• Mature, self-directed individuals who can prioritize and balance multiple tasks and work effectively with research peers and the senior research team to meet deadlines. 
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, excellent organizational skills and high attention to detail.

Application Process

Submit your application to hr@mssrf.res.in by April 15, 2025, for first consideration. We will consider later applications too, on a rolling basis

Job Summary

You will work directly with the senior research team (Dr Sanjay Jain, Dr Soumya Swaminathan and Professor Kamalini Ramdas) to develop and test improved pathways to deliver routine care for diabetes and hypertension in the Tamil Nadu Public Health system. You will have the unique opportunity to work both with a leading Indian research foundation (MS Swaminathan Research Foundation in Chennai), and with faculty at Oxford and London Business School. You will gain invaluable research experience for a future in economics, operations research, operations management, or public health. Candidates must have strong technical skills. Salary is competitive. 

Predocs will have the opportunity to partake in the vibrant research community at Oxford Department of Economics and London Business School by attending virtual seminars and workshops and meeting PhD students and other researchers, in preparation for a successful academic career. The predoc position requires a commitment of one year. Applicants must be available to begin work as early as April 2025 and no later than June 2025. The research assistant position requires a commitment of at least two months and applicants must be available to begin work as early as April 2025 and no later than May 2025. For exceptional candidates, a later start may be possible. 

Applicants much be citizens of India. Applicants must have completed at least a Bachelors’ degree by August 2025 in Economics, Computer Science, Statistics or related disciplines, and have strong quantitative and programming skills. Candidates with research experience are strongly preferred, especially those with experience in R, Python, Stata, LLMs and Arc GIS and demonstrated ability to quickly learn new software as needed.