Qualitative interviewer and analyst Full Time NEW

Department: SRH

Reports to: Research and Learning Advisor

Based in: Multiple Woredas across Afar and Somali regions.

Duration of contract: Based on Ad-Hoc assignments

Application Deadline: 5 days after vacancy announcements

Who are we?

We’re Population Services International (PSI), the world’s leading non‐profit social marketing organization. We work to make it easier for people in the developing world to lead healthier lives and plan the families they desire by marketing affordable products and services that range from mosquito nets to contraceptives to HIV testing. We are a $560m enterprise based in Washington, DC, operating in the private and public sectors in more than 65 countries.

Join us!

There are over 9,000 “PSI’ers” around the world. It’s a diverse group of entrepreneurs and professionals with an unusually wide range of backgrounds – from the medical industry to the music business – all with unique skills we bring to the job.

PSI/Ethiopia wants to reimagine healthcare, put the consumer at the center, and whenever possible, bring quality care to the front door. We achieve health impact in Ethiopia by working with both government and private partners and harvesting technology innovation to bring quality care closer to communities, schools, and homes. We empower consumers by including them in the design of healthcare solutions, offering them more healthcare choices, and helping them to have a voice in influencing national priorities. We work with all market actors in the health system to understand their needs, designing and delivering solutions so that market systems can sustainably serve consumers for the long term, helping to support the Government of Ethiopia in achieving Universal Health Coverage.

PSI Ethiopia, in partnership with JSI and the Ministry of Health (MOH), is preparing to implement a three-year project to strengthen RMNCHN and malaria service delivery through enhanced com-munity engagement using the Village Health Leader (VHL) model. The RMNCHN + Malaria Project aim to strengthen the continuum of care and accelerate improvements in maternal, newborn, and child health outcomes across target regions and woredas. The project will be implemented in Nine regions: Afar, Oromia, Amhara, South Ethiopia, Tigray, Sidama, Central Ethiopia, South-west Ethiopia and Somali covering a total of 100 woredas.

We are looking for

We are seeking highly skilled Qualitative interviewers (1 in Afar and 1 in Somali) and analysts to conduct qualitative interviews and collaborate in qualitative data analysis with the research team for a national community RMNCH, nutrition and Malaria program baseline assessment.

Job Responsibilities

• Qualitative Data Collection: Independently organize and facilitate specialized fieldwork sessions within assigned Woredas, including:
• • In-Depth Interviews (IDIs) with Married Women, Health Extension Workers (HEWs), and Village Health Leaders (VHLs).
  • Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with local stakeholders.
  • Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with Young Mothers, Older Mothers, and Male Caretakers.
• Audio Recording & Notetaking: Ensure high-quality audio recording of all sessions while maintaining precise, contextual field notes ensuring data quality and ethical standards
• Transcription & Translation: Transcribe audio recordings verbatim from local languages and accurately translate them into English templates.
• Qualitative Data Analysis: Conduct rigorous thematic data analysis of transcribed text using qualitative software (e.g., Dedoose, NVivo, ATLAS.ti) or structured manual framework matrices and submit all the datasets and field notes to their supervisors.
• Reporting: Draft and generate clean, thematic summary briefs for each assigned Woreda outlining core cultural barriers, healthcare perceptions, and local socio-ecological factors

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Reproductive Health, Midwifery, Nursing, Public Health, Nutrition, or a closely related field. Candidates with a master’s degree in medical Anthropology, Gender Studies, Social Work, or another relevant social science discipline, particularly with experience in reproductive, maternal, child health, and nutrition data, are also encouraged to apply.
• Qualitative Expertise: At least 3 years of verified experience designing, conducting, and analyzing qualitative health research (FGDs, KIIs, and IDIs) and publication of at least one original research article that utilized qualitative or mixed method design in peer reviewed high impact journals.
• Analytical Software Proficiency: Proven experience utilizing qualitative data analysis software (NVivo or ATLAS.ti) to code text and generate thematic matrices.

Language

• Fluency: Excellent written and spoken English for cross-collaboration and final reporting.
• Professional working fluency in the native language of the assigned cluster (Afar’af and Somali,) is mandatory to moderate FGDs naturally without a translator is a plus.

Cultural & Gender Sensitivity: Demonstrated cultural sensitivity and understanding of local community structures, social norms, gender dynamics, and appropriate engagement protocols when interacting with diverse community members and stakeholders

Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply, considering the nature of the assignment