Young Graduate Program: Research Associate

Opportunity Alert: The Young Graduate Program, a Tricent Mentorship Initiative for the Professional Integration of Young People in Pan-African Research, Research Associate – Sub-Saharan Africa

Are you a data-savvy graduate or an emerging and early career professional with a passion for social impact across education, health, agriculture, and livelihoods—this is your moment. Join a dynamic team tackling development challenges with cutting-edge research and technology.

Tricent is a data, research and technical advisory firm that helps clients understand and analyze complex development challenges.

We define ourselves by our ability to embrace and deploy innovative research technologies and methodologies. We use an anti-disciplinary approach, borrowing methods not only from econometrics but other fields as well… Read more about this company

Research Associate

Job Type: Part Time
Qualification: BA/BSc/HND (A Master’s degree with no prior experience)
Experience: Less than 5 years
Location: Nairobi I Kenya (Remotely with preference for Sub Saharan Countries: South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal)
Job Field: Data, Business Analysis and AI

Key Responsibilities

As a Research Associate, based in our Nairobi office or remotely, you will be supporting research projects in our Kenya office with a strong social focus. Our research focuses on issues related to social impact investing, education, public health, agriculture, youth and livelihoods and urbanization & migration.

As an associate you:

• Work on technical research projects – supporting the design of research instruments and research designs, conducting quantitative and qualitative analysis, drafting sections of reports, and keeping clients updated on progress.
• Independently deliver high-quality sections of reports or data analysis – ensuring your deliverables are client-ready and on time.
• Work with a team – proactively communicating with team members to keep projects on track, paying attention to details, and escalating any risks or issues early.

You will be able to develop skills and experience in:

• Technical design of research projects, including sampling and impact evaluation methodologies.
• Project management and client communication.
• Data analysis, statistical techniques and coding.
• Report writing: drawing insights from data and presenting them in a client-ready, consultancy quality format.

This position is offered as a 6 months’ contract. Following this first contract, Tricent will be open to discuss possibilities of extension and, career development in our Kenya office or working remotely.

Profile

This position is ideal for a recent graduate with strong data analysis skills and a passion for social and economic research in Sub Saharan Africa.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Statistics, Data Science, Applied Economics, or a related field.
• Minimum 1 year of professional experience (including internships/attachments) in a similar role.
• Master’s degree holders with no prior experience are also eligible.
• Strong quantitative analysis skills and proficiency in Ms Excel, Stata, and SPSS.
• Experience with ODK-based platforms (KOBO, SurveyCTO, ODK, CommCare).
• Excellent written and verbal communication in English and Kiswahili.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Prior work experience in Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Strong organizational and interpersonal skills, with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Familiarity with SPSS, STATA, Advanced Excel, Python, and/or R is a plus.