Data Science Fellow (AI, ML, NLP)


Location : Istanbul, TURKEY
Application Deadline :04-Jun-23 (Midnight New York, USA)
Time left :3d 4h 15m
Additional Category :Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction
Type of Contract :Other
Post Level :Other
Languages Required :
 English  
Starting Date :
(date when the selected candidate is expected to start)		19-Jun-2023
Duration of Initial Contract :12 months
Expected Duration of Assignment :12 months

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UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.


Background

CORPORATE BACKGROUND:

UNDP works in about 170 countries and territories, helping to eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and exclusion, and build resilience so countries can sustain progress. As the UN’s development agency, UNDP plays a critical role in helping countries achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Istanbul International Center for Private Sector in Development (IICPSD) is the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) global organization mandated to leverage the role of the private sector in development. The ICPSD was established in Istanbul, Türkiye based on the Partnership Framework Agreement signed between the Government of the Republic of Türkiye and the United Nations Development Program in March 2011. The Center is one of the six global thematic policy centers of UNDP, supports the private sector and foundations to become transformative partners in development through research, advocacy, facilitation of public-private dialogue and brokering partnerships. ICPSD leads UNDP’s global work on private sector and foundations and supports UNDP’s offices all around the world.  

FELLOWSHIP OFFICE BACKGROUND:

The SDG AI Lab is a joint initiative of UNDP BPPS team, and it is hosted under UNDP ICPSD. The SDG AI Lab provides research, development and advisory support through cutting-edge digital solutions in harnessing the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for sustainable development. The Lab aims to strengthen the UNDP’s internal and its partners’ capacities for the increasing demand for digital transformation.  

UNDP ICPSD’s SDG AI Lab, UN Technology Bank will jointly implement the ‘Frontier Tech Leaders’ programme for the LDCs to bridge the digital divide and contribute to the 2030 Agenda of sustainable development. The ‘Frontier Tech Leaders’ programme aims to train the next generation of tech specialists in the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) to address the challenges facing their communities by developing digital solutions. In this sense, it will inspire youth and provide them with the means for action. With a focus on encouraging young women to pursue education and careers in the field of technology, the programme will contribute to the promotion of gender equality.

SDG AI Lab’s Data Science Fellowship modality is based on UNDP’s Fellowship policy. The objective of the Data Science Fellowship is to provide the opportunity to work on how to deploy frontier technologies such as Data Science, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, Deep Learning (DL), Natural Language Processing (NLP), GIS, and Blockchain on development issues. In particular, the Fellow will support Frontier Tech Leaders programme’s training and community activities.

This Data Science Fellow position is full-time and home-based.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Fellow will assist in the following duties and responsibilities:

 

No

Duties and responsibilities

% of time

1

Support Frontier Tech Leaders Training component

  • Plan and prepare materials for learning collaboratives on ML and DL
  • Conduct learning collaborative sessions on topics covering ML and DL
  • Host office hours for learners’ questions and inquiries
  • Teaching and assistance to students individually or in small groups
  • Facilitate communications and discussions among learners
  • Monitor and report each learner’s progress
  • Cultivate a positive, organized learning atmosphere 

40 %

2

Support Frontier Tech Leaders Community component

  • Organize community events
  • Facilitate communications and discussions within the community
  • Provide support to local chapters

 

20 %

3

Development and implementation of digital solutions for SDGs with utilizing AI/ML/DL/NLP

  • Develop ML and DL models applying supervised and unsupervised techniques on structured and unstructured Big Data
  • Build and deploy AI/ML/DL models using the relevant techniques
  • Design and implement data quality procedures to support data quality management activities for data pipelines
  • Research and experiment with customized software using the relevant techniques for the data such as NLP and GIS

30 %

4

Other

  • Provide as needed support to the Technical Specialist as required for, amongst others, participating in meetings, conferences, providing administrative support, drafting meeting minutes and perform other functions and duties. 

10 %

Competencies

Other competencies and attitude:

  • Interest in innovative teaching, learning and assessment
  • Flexibility and capacity to teach (predominantly remotely) across a range of courses
  • Willingness and capacity to undertake continuous professional development in relation to the use of technology, software, and data in relation to the subject area, and to teach on these matters
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills including presentation skills, both face-to-face and online
  • Ability to engage and develop working relationships with programme participants and project stakeholders
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability
  • Responds positively to feedback and differing points of view
  • Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude


Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Candidates must meet one of the following educational requirements:

  • currently enrolled in a postgraduate programme (such as a Master’s programme or higher)
  • have graduated no longer than 2 years ago from a university degree or equivalent studies

Field of study:  Computer Science, Statistics, Data Science, Mathematics or equivalent

IT skills:

  • Strong proficiency in Python
  • Strong understanding of Machine Learning, Deep Learning and Natural Language Processing
  • Completion of AI/DL/ML certification from Coursera (Andrew Ng courses) is an asset
  • Knowledge of open-source software library such as TensorFlow, Scikit-Learn, Pandas, and NLTK is an asset
  • Familiarity with the Software Development tools including Git and GitHub

Language skills:

  • Fluent in English with excellent reading and writing skills is required
  • Proficiency in Turkish is an asset
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