Research Assistants

Role Overview

As a field research data collector, you will recruit eligible participants and gather survey and interview data according to the study’s approved procedures. Your careful, respectful approach will help protect participants’ rights while giving the research team reliable information for its analysis.

Key Responsibilities

• Identify potential participants, check their eligibility, and document recruitment activity using approved screening procedures.
• Explain the study and obtain informed consent before collecting any information.
• Administer approved surveys and conduct in-depth interviews, using neutral questions, attentive listening, and appropriate follow-up prompts.
• Conduct interviews in participants’ preferred languages when appropriate, and arrange interviews at safe, convenient times and locations.
• Record interviews and prepare detailed field notes only when participants have given permission.
• Keep accurate participant and interview logs, and safeguard study records, devices, and other materials.
• Attend field briefings and debriefings, report progress, and promptly raise recruitment barriers, technical problems, participant concerns, or departures from protocol.
• Assist the research team with data quality checks and, where needed, data organization, transcription, cleaning, or coding.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Degree in social sciences, public health, community development, sociology, anthropology, psychology, or a related discipline.
• Practical experience collecting survey data or conducting qualitative research, including in-depth interviews.
• Experience recruiting and screening participants, obtaining informed consent, and working with human subjects in research or related settings.
• Clear, respectful communication and the ability to build rapport with people from varied backgrounds.
• Strong listening and interviewing skills, sound judgment, discretion, and close attention to detail.
• Ability to organize work, manage time, meet assigned collection targets without compromising data quality, and contribute both independently and within a team.
• Comfort using smartphones, tablets, digital audio recorders, and electronic data collection tools.
• Willingness to travel within the assigned study area and work full-time during the data collection period.
• Experience in family planning, reproductive health, digital health, telemedicine, e-pharmacy, or related health services research is an advantage; experience with qualitative data handling is also desirable.