UJALA African Scholars Program 2025 – YOA

Deadline: October 1, 2025

Applications are open for the UJALA African Scholars Program 2025. The UJALA African Scholars Program helps African students to guide rigorous, coverage-related affect evaluations in agriculture throughout the globe. Despite rising curiosity in proof-primarily based policymaking, many students face obstacles to accessing the assets and help wanted to guide excessive-high quality randomized evaluations.

To handle this hole, UJALA will supply a tailor-made bundle of coaching, mentorship, funding, and palms-on expertise to researchers who maintain a PhD in Economics, Agricultural Economics, or a associated empirical area and are affiliated with an instructional establishment.

Program Components

• Training and training: During the primary part of this system, some students is likely to be beneficial to finish one or two programs from the Data, Economics, and Design of Policy MicroMasters (DEDP), notably if they’re new to affect analysis or want a refresher on key ideas. Course charges will likely be lined by UJALA.
• Mentorship: Mentorship begins after the scholar efficiently completes the coaching parts of the UJALA African Scholars Program, submits a Letter of Interest (LOI), and is invited to submit a full proposal following a optimistic overview of their LOI.
• Impact analysis tracks: Scholars will both:
  • Design and suggest their very own pilot study on a subject of their selection, aligned with UJALA’s analysis agenda. (Note that every one pilots have to be piloting analysis actions on the pathway to a full-scale randomized analysis).
  • Team up with one other scholar inside the UJALA African Scholars Program and collectively develop a single pilot proposal.
  • Join an ongoing randomized analysis led by an skilled principal investigator (PI) to achieve sensible, palms-on expertise by way of a analysis placement. This choice is especially fitted to early-profession students or these new to randomized evaluations. However, placement is dependent upon mission timelines and staff wants.
• Research funding: Scholars can apply for as much as $75,000 (pre-tax) in pilot grant funding to design and implement early-stage RCTs.
• Professional growth: Scholars will develop sensible abilities in designing and operating randomized evaluations, together with drafting proposals and corresponding budgets, responding to see evaluations, and speaking analysis findings.
• Networking and collaboration: UJALA African Scholars Program individuals will work carefully with their cohort friends and mentors whereas growing their analysis initiatives and constructing connections by way of shared studying and collaboration.
• Visibility and engagement: Scholars might have alternatives to share their work at UJALA and associate occasions. Their initiatives may additionally be featured in newsletters, social media posts, or different platforms to spotlight key milestones and achievements.

Eligibility

The program is open to resident and non-resident African students conducting analysis aligned with UJALA’s analysis priorities. Specific necessities embrace:

• Academic background: PhD in Economics, Agricultural Economics, or a associated empirical self-discipline.
• Quantitative abilities: Advanced stage of econometrics, statistics, and information evaluation is required, together with proficiency in both Stata or R.
• Language abilities: Advanced proficiency in English (i.e., fluent or native-stage) is required to interact with coaching, mentorship, and analysis actions.
• Professional affiliation:
  • Resident students have to be primarily based at an instructional establishment in Africa. 
    Non-resident students should have accomplished highschool in Africa and be at present primarily based at an instructional establishment overseas.
• Research focus: Interest in growth economics, affect analysis, and randomized managed trials, with a give attention to agriculture.
• Program dedication: Willingness and availability to finish all program parts, together with coaching and any beneficial coursework, mentorship actions, and analysis engagements.
• Prior engagement (most well-liked): Candidates affiliated with UM6P or who’ve collaborated with OCP-affiliated entities or their companions will obtain precedence consideration.

Applicants should not be present J-PAL associates or invited researchers. Prior collaboration with J-PAL researchers in these roles shouldn’t be disqualifying, so long as the applicant meets the eligibility standards.

Application

Click here to apply

For extra data, go to UJALA African Scholars Program.