Research Assistant

Job Posting Organization:
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organization established in 1944 with the mission to promote global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world. The IMF has a diverse workforce of over 2,700 employees from more than 150 countries, operating in various regions across the globe. The organization plays a crucial role in providing financial assistance and advice to its member countries, helping them to stabilize their economies and foster growth. The Strategy, Policy, and Review Department (SPR) is one of the key departments within the IMF, focusing on the development and review of policies that guide the IMF's operations and its engagement with member countries.

Job Overview:
The position of Research Assistant (RA) within the Macro-Risk Unit of the Strategy, Policy, and Review Department (SPR) at the IMF is designed for individuals who are eager to engage in a fast-paced, innovative, and technology-driven environment. The RA will play a pivotal role in assessing global and domestic risks across various economic sectors for all member countries. This role involves not only managing and analyzing data but also developing and interpreting advanced analytical tools for risk assessment. The successful candidate will lead a team of RAs, coordinating their efforts and ensuring the effective execution of tasks. The position requires a strong analytical mindset, proficiency in data management, and the ability to communicate complex information clearly and effectively. The RA will also be responsible for creating and maintaining data visualization tools that help convey the results of complex machine-learning models and other analytical work to both internal and external stakeholders.

Duties and Responsibilities:
The duties and responsibilities of the Research Assistant include:

• Designing, building, documenting, and maintaining systems to ingest and transform external and in-house data series, ensuring accuracy in source definitions, transformations, and vintages.
• Importing, processing, consolidating, and transforming data sets within and between databases using statistical and econometric techniques, which typically requires programming expertise.
• Analyzing economic, financial, or statistical relationships in databases, identifying key relevant data series and novel datasets.
• Utilizing text analysis and natural language processing techniques to extract relevant information from documents.
• Developing and maintaining innovative data visualization tools to effectively communicate complex nonlinear model results to economists.
• Participating in the design and estimation of innovative risk assessment models to track emergent global and country-specific risks.
• Preparing PowerPoint presentations that compile the work of the unit.
• Carrying out additional assignments as directed by the Unit Chief or Deputy Unit Chief.
• Leading a team of dedicated and part-time RAs through complex, multi-stage processes, prioritizing key work processes and objectives.

Required Qualifications:
Candidates must possess a university degree or equivalent in economics, finance, statistics, computer science, or a related field of study. Proficiency in Excel is essential, along with strong skills in Word and PowerPoint. Candidates should demonstrate strong programming skills in Python, R, Stata, and MATLAB. Expertise in empirical forecasting, particularly with tree-based and boosted models, is required, along with experience in machine learning time series panel estimation, model design, and evaluation. A solid understanding of macroeconomic theory and concepts is necessary, with experience in macroeconomic and financial crises considered a plus. Candidates should also have strong knowledge of data visualization tools, especially PowerBI, and any experience contributing to academic or policy-oriented economic research is advantageous. Additionally, candidates should exhibit innovation, creativity, strong communication skills, and a drive for results.

Educational Background:
The educational background required for this position typically includes the completion of a university degree in economics, finance, statistics, computer science, or a related field. This foundational education is essential for understanding the complex economic and statistical analyses that the role demands.

Experience:
The position requires candidates to have a strong background in data analysis and programming, with specific experience in empirical forecasting and machine learning techniques. While the job does not specify a minimum number of years of experience, candidates should demonstrate a proven track record of relevant work, particularly in roles that involve data management, risk assessment, and economic analysis.

Languages:
Proficiency in English is mandatory for this position, as it is the working language of the IMF. Additional language skills may be beneficial but are not explicitly required.

Additional Notes:
This vacancy is for a 3-year term appointment in accordance with the Fund’s employment rules. The term position is extendable for up to 3 years but is not viable for conversion to open-ended staff. Only candidates who are currently residing in the Washington DC metro area will be considered for this role. All applicants are expected to include a Statement of Interest as an attachment to their application, which may be used in the screening process for this vacancy. The IMF is committed to diversity and inclusion and welcomes requests for reasonable accommodations for disabilities during the selection process.