UNDP Jobs - 79711- Behavioral Psychology/Social Science Assistant (In

Behavioral Psychology/Social Science Assistant (Internship)

Location :

Colombo, SRI LANKA

Type of Contract :

Internship

Starting Date :

30-Jul-2018

Application Deadline :

20-Jul-18 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

Intern

Duration of Initial Contract :

6 Months

Languages Required :

Expected Duration of Assignment :

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

UNDP is the UN’s global development network, advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. We are on the ground in 166 countries, working with them on their own solutions to global and national development challenges.
The lack of importance placed on the concepts of foresight and innovation, and its vital role in sustainable human development, was a vacuum that was identified by the UNDP CO in Sri Lanka. UNDP therefore joined with several partners from the Government, development, and private sector to organize the First National Summit on Foresight and Innovation for Sustainable Human Development in 2016. This initiated a much-needed conversation about the topics of innovation and foresight and its relevance in planning for a better future.
As one of the main outcomes of the Summit, UNDP and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Research initiated the establishment of Sri Lanka’s first Social Innovation Lab. The lab will act as a safe-space which allows for innovative policy prototypes to be developed by harnessing citizens’ insights and tested in a controlled environment, allowing the incorporation of feedback in order to further develop the policy being tested. Within UNDP and the Ministry, however, it is additionally a change initiative which is developing the following capacities and approaches among the public sector:

Foresight – evidence mapping, market intelligence/horizon scanning, systems mapping.
User insights – using citizen engagement to allow for comprehensive understanding of issues, as well as prototyped solutions
Crowd intelligence – receiving challenges through social innovation camps, using crowd sourcing methods to find solutions
Co-design – user-innovation; human-centered design, service design.

Via the aforementioned approaches, the Lab enables UNDP to partner with “unusual suspects” and assist the government, along with the Ministry, to better the public sector by reaching across sectors to provide policy recommendations and innovative solutions to meet the increasingly complex demands of Sri Lankan society.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Intern will support the work of the Citra Social Innovation Lab, and work under the direct supervision of the Project Coordination Associate. The specific tasks are outlined below:

Support the collection of data and information for Lab research and analysis;
Contribute to the formulation and quality assurance (fact checking, coherence) of research notes, reports and publications;
Support the translation of social psychological/political scientific/economic theory into practice;
Assist in the collation of qualitative and quantitative data (prior experience not required);
Provide coordination and administrative support to achieve the outputs of the Lab;
Proactively scout for new innovative ideas and opportunities that will further the work of the Lab;
Assist in the formulation, designing, planning and implementation of all tasks and activities of the Lab in any given cycle;
Assist in any and all other tasks as required for the operation of the Lab.

Competencies

Interested in working within an international organization;
Sets priorities, produces quality outputs, meets deadlines, and manages time efficiently,
Responds positively to feedback and differing points of view;
Pays attention to detail;
Good analytical skills in gathering and consolidating research for practical implementation;
Outgoing and proactive with a goal-oriented mind-set;
Effective communication skills when working individually and in a team-setting;
Good in organizing and structuring various tasks and responsibilities;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality, and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
Experience in using the Microsoft Office software packages;

Required Skills and Experience

Applicants to the UNDP internship programme must at the time of application meet one of the following requirements:

(a )Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher); in the field of B.A/B.Sc. in Behavioral Psychology, Political Science, Development Studies, Economics, or other social science or equivalent;
(b) Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor’s level or equivalent);
(c) Have graduated with a university degree (as defined in (a) and (b) above) and, if selected, must start the internship within one-year of graduation.