J-PAL MENA Scholars Fellowship 2026 – Fully Funded Research Opportunity for Early-Career Economists and Policy Researchers

The J-PAL MENA Scholars Fellowship is a two-year fully supported research fellowship offered by the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) Middle East and North Africa (MENA) program. It is designed to support early-career researchers from the MENA region to build skills in rigorous impact evaluation and evidence-based policy research, while contributing to real development projects in the region.

What Is the MENA Scholars Fellowship

1. The fellowship enables researchers to work on randomized evaluations of poverty reduction and social development programs in the MENA region.
2. It includes hands-on research, professional mentorship, training, and participation in policy events.
3. The program is built by J-PAL MENA at the American University in Cairo with support from Community Jameel and the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development.
4. Fellows become part of both the regional MENA research network and the broader global J-PAL community of scholars and fellows.
5. The fellowship is structured over two years with a combination of research, academic training, and professional development activities.

Program Components and Benefits

1. Fellows contribute to ongoing randomized evaluation projects under the guidance of J-PAL affiliates and MENA staff.
2. Each fellow receives a USD 15,000 stipend distributed over the two-year period to support their involvement.
3. Fellows receive one-on-one mentorship from experienced researchers and J-PAL affiliates.
4. The program includes educational training, such as enrollment in MIT MicroMasters online courses related to impact evaluation and econometrics.
5. Fellows also benefit from capacity-building workshops on proposal writing, data analysis, and professional development.
6. Opportunities to participate in regional policy events and gain media visibility for their research work.
7. In the second year, fellows may design and lead an independent evaluation project on a topic of interest in the region.

Who Is Eligible

1. Applicants must specialize in economics or a related discipline, such as public policy, political science, public health, or statistics.
2. Track 1 – PhD students: candidates currently enrolled in a PhD program in economics or related fields, with nationality from the MENA region, are eligible.
3. Track 2 – Academic scholars: candidates with a completed PhD affiliated with a MENA academic institution can also apply.
4. Applicants should demonstrate strong proficiency in both Arabic and English.
5. Proficiency in quantitative tools such as Stata or R is highly recommended.
6. Applicants must show interest in impact evaluation and development policy issues in the MENA region.
7. Fellows are expected to commit fully to the fellowship activities over the two-year period.

Why This Fellowship Matters

1. The fellowship builds advanced research capacity in experimental economics and impact evaluation in the MENA region.
2. It helps sharpen skills in rigorous research methods that inform policy design and evaluation.
3. Fellows join a growing network of researchers working on policy-relevant evidence across sectors like education, health, climate, and labor markets.
4. Participation enhances professional visibility, collaboration opportunities, and future academic or policy careers.