Call for applications for 2024 PEP Research Fellowship For Young Researchers

Published: 29 Apr 2024

We invite researchers based in low- and middle-income countries to apply to join the organisation as PEP Research Fellows.

The Partnership for Economic Policy (PEP) invites researchers based in low- and middle-income countries to apply to join the organisation as Research Fellows (RF).

PEP Research Fellows are senior, Southern-based scholars chosen through a competitive process to participate in critical PEP research, training, and policy activities. The PEP Research Fellows program aims to enhance links among South-based scholars so that they can collectively contribute a Southern viewpoint to the global development research agenda.

Award decisions for this Fellowship will be based on the candidates’:

• Quality and quantity of research activities (which journals and awards/prizes) and relevance to PEP themes and methods of analysis)
• Quality and quantity of national, regional and global policy engagement/advisory activities
• Quality and type of other activities relevant to PEP research fellowship (such as training, teaching, conference participations, network affiliations, fundraising/grants received, influencing development discourse using social media, etc.)
• Quality of the letter of motivation and potential contribution to the PEP Research Fellow program and PEP as a whole.

PEP Research Fellowship

Benefits of PEP Research Fellowship

The PEP Research Fellowship is a status of affiliation with PEP. It gives the Fellows the right to participate in various PEP activities, with remuneration/funding in some cases.

These activities include:

1. Contributing to PEP research programs.
2. Acting as a scientific or policy mentor/reviewer for a PEP-funded project, or contributing more generally to the design and implementation of PEP programs.
3. Contributing to PEP online or in-class training activities.
4. Contributing to the dissemination/visibility activities of PEP.
   • For example, at national and international conferences, and in blogs, newsletters, policy briefs/activities, X(previously Twitter) threads and LinkedIn/Facebook posts, etc.
5. Representing PEP at international conferences.
   • Funding may be available depending on research quality and the importance of the conference for researcher/PEP visibility and reputation.
6. Proposing new initiatives that fit within the strategic priorities of PEP where fundraising possibilities exist.
7. Submitting their research papers for publication in the PEP working paper series
8. Proposing and, if approved, implementing new activities within the RF program.
9. Option of being elected (by the assembly of RFs) to serve as a representative of the Research Fellows in PEP’s corporate membership at the annual PEP General Assembly
10. Participating in a South-based professional network to share skills, collaborate on research and dissemination initiatives, debate ideas, etc.

Requirements for PEP Research Fellowship

The 2024 recruitment is open to all researchers living and working in low- or middle-income countries. Priority areas for recruitment this year include:

• Asia and Middle East/North Africa
• Expertise in gender, health, entrepreneurship or multidisciplinary approaches

Female candidates are strongly encouraged as PEP strives to maintain a gender balance in its RF program. Researchers residing in a developed country and/or members of PEP staff (excluding consultants) are not eligible to be a PEP Research Fellow.

Selection Process

Evaluation criteria

The PEP Research Fellowship is a status of affiliation with PEP giving the selected fellows the right to apply for various types of support and participate in various PEP activities. The PEP Research Fellowship is not a paid position, but it involves a number of responsibilities.

We expect RFs to participate in the network activities – to be, in a broad sense, “good PEP citizens”. PEP will review the performance of RFs at the end of their three-year mandate to determine if it is to be renewed or not.

Reviews are based on the criteria below. Each RF should provide a short report on their activities outlining their activities for each criterion (a maximum of two activities will be counted for each criterion). Please provide sufficient details on each activity to ensure a proper assessment and validation.

• Act as scientific or policy mentor for a PEP project (1 point): please indicate the number and title of the project(s) mentored.
• Publish a PEP working paper as one of the main authors (1 point): provide full bibliographic reference and link to the WP.
• Make a substantive contribution to a PEP blog/newsletter/policy brief/twitter threads (0.5 points): provide e-version or URL.
• Review a PEP proposal/report/working paper/policy brief (outside mentoring responsibilities) (0.5 points): indicate project number and title.
• Contribute substantively to the preparation of a proposal submitted by PEP to a donor (1 point): indicate the target funder and title of the proposal.
• Represent PEP (indicating prominently your PEP RF status) at an international conference or event (0.5 points): provide title, location, URL and date of the event, along with proof that your presentation prominently indicates your PEP RF status).
• Make a presentation at a PEP conference/event (0.5 points): provide title, location, URL and date of event, along with e-version or URL to your presentation.
• Make a substantial contribution (0.5 or 1 point depending on the nature of the contribution) to the PEP RF program through activities undertaken in an RF subcommittee or otherwise: indicate the name of the subcommittee (if applicable) and specific activities conducted.
• Teach, or contribute substantively to the development of, a PEP online or in-class course (1 point): indicate the name of the course and specific activities conducted.
• Publish a paper in a peer-reviewed journal with PEP affiliation clearly indicated (half-point for Ref 1* or 2*; full point for Ref 3* or 4* - see journal rankings1): provide full bibliographic reference and link to the paper.
• Other PEP activities (0, 0.5 or 1 point depending on the nature of the contribution).
• Have you encountered any major difficulties in playing your role as a PEP Research Fellow during this one-year activity period? If so, which ones would you like to bring to the attention of PEP?
• What solutions would you suggest to fix these problems and, generally, to improve the PEP RF Program?

RFs are required to score at least 5 points over the three-year mandate period. These are minimum requirements to be considered for renewal, but final decisions will be made on the recommendation of the PC and the decision of the Board based on an evaluation of the overall quality of the renewal application.

Application Deadline

How to Apply