UNICEF seeks to recruit a Consultant for Girls’ Education and Skills for Employability in STEM, Gender Section, PD-NYHQ – United States

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

 

Background & rationale

UNICEF is undertaking efforts to build a coalition to advance solutions and investments in young people, helping to prepare them for the economies and working world of the 21st century. A focus on girls and the disadvantages they face—and the opportunities they present—is a key part of this effort. Secondary school education and skills’ development, including in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), is also a targeted priority in UNICEF’s Gender Action Plan (GAP) 2018 – 2021. UNICEF is interested in supporting the skills development of girls at secondary level and beyond through at-scale models that can be embedded in national systems, developing capabilities in girls for both personal and social advancement as well as for employment, especially in fields underrepresented by women. This can involve developing or improving existing curricula and teaching methodologies to facilitate girls’ learning and skills for employability in schools, technical and vocational training programmes (TVET programmes); improving national policies, budgeting, financing; better teacher training and more female teachers, who mentor girls; greater focus on technology, incentives and support systems on STEM for girls; development or improvement of subsidies, scholarships or vouchers for quality schooling, skills, or safe transport; as well as innovations in financing for girls’ skills and education and in platforms through which these are delivered, as for example, digitally or through workplace placements and related initiatives.

 

Purpose

UNICEF is seeking a consultant to help the Gender Section to identify existing or promising programme approaches for scale on girls’ access to STEM education and successful transition from schooling to employment in STEM sectors. This entails identifying the most promising strategies, partners, locations, and solutions for further engagement in this area. Specifically, the consultant will carry out the following functions:

Undertake a landscape/stakeholder analysis on existing initiatives/programmes, strategies and actors working on the following areas :

• Girls’ access to STEM subjects in the education sectors, including in teaching curricula, teacher’s training and at primary and secondary levels ;
• Pathways for enabling girls’ transition from schooling to skilled, decent employment (including technical and vocational skills, not limited to STEM fields).

Identify key issues and action points most relevant in shaping a successful programming approaches for girls’ education, skill development and employment in STEM fields and opportunities to advance programming, in alignment with the GAP and Education Sector strategy.  This will include the development of :

• A technical note for the inclusion of girls’ education and skill development in country programmes and related programme strategy notes (regional adaptation/translation of HQ materials), and ;
• Metrics for measuring girl’s skill development towards the recommendation of relevant indicators for inclusion in country programme documents.

The consultant will work directly with the 2 Senior Advisors in the Gender Section at UNICEF NYHQ working on Adolescent Girls’ Empowerment and on Gender Socialization. The consultant will also consult with the Education team and the Regional and Country Offices and other internal and external colleagues as appropriate.

 

Expected results and activities :

1. Under the supervision of the Senior Advisors, the consultant will map key information on girls’ education and skill development in STEM related fields ;
2. (S)he will be responsible for the following activities ;
3. Undertake desk review and interviews on the existing reports, articles, key actors and programme initiatives working on girls’ schooling/learning and skill development in STEM related fields, specifically linked to transition to decent, skilled employability/livelihoods, organize them within some meaningful analytical frameworks and establish some criteria for prioritization (e.g. experience/expertise, size/scale, geographic focus, etc.). This landscape exercise should provide a strong (not necessarily comprehensive) picture of the range of actors and initiatives in this space ;
4. Based on desk review, develop a Technical Note (max. 10-pages) for the inclusion of girls’ schooling/learning and skill development in STEM related fields, specifically linked to transition to decent, skilled employability/livelihoods in country programmes and related programme strategy notes (regional adaptation/translation of HQ materials, including metrics to measure success ;
5. A presentation and consultation with key stakeholders on the mapping findings and recommendations towards validation, compiling these in a technical note with stakeholder buy-in.

 

Timeframe

Start date : 15 December 2018

End date :  30 April 2019

DUTY STATION : remote based

Key competences, technical background, and experience required

• Mater’s degree in the social sciences (i.e. international development, education, sociology) or directly related technical fields, in combination with an academic background/ research experience in gender ;
• Significant experience (8+ years) conducting research at national and international level in education and gender equality, training and skill development, employability and livelihoods ;
• Strong analytical research skills and demonstrated experience in organizing complex programmatic information into meaningful categories and synthesizing data across fields of practice ;
• Experience with and understanding of private sector and innovative partnerships and philanthropy ;
• Excellent organizational skills and ability to prioritize and manage multiple tasks within agreed deadlines and with attention to details ;
• Experience working in the UN or other international development organizations an asset ;
• Strong communication skills including writing and presentation skills.

Please indicate your ability, availability and daily/monthly rate (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference above (including travel and daily subsistence allowance, if applicable). Applications submitted without a daily/monthly rate will not be considered.

 

Remarks

With the exception of the US Citizens, G4 Visa and Green Card holders, should the selected candidate and his/her household members reside in the United States under a different visa, the consultant and his/her household members are required to change their visa status to G4, and the consultant’s household members (spouse) will require an Employment Authorization Card (EAD) to be able to work, even if he/she was authorized to work under the visa held prior to switching to G4.

At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.