Thursday, March 21, 2013

USAID Internship


Contributed by Brea Didenhover, BYU MPH 2010

Global Health Fellows Program II
Nutrition and Food Security Intern

Nutrition Division, Office of Health, Infectious Disease and Nutrition, Bureau for Global Health, US Agency for International Development

Location: Washington, DC
May 14, 2013 - November 15, 2013: Compensated 24 Week Internship
OND-P2-004

The Global Health Fellows Program (GHFP-II) is a five year cooperative agreement implemented and managed by the Public Health Institute in partnership with CDC Development Solutions and Management Systems International. GHFP-II is supported by the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

GHFP-II's goal is to improve the effectiveness of USAID health programs by addressing the Agency's immediate and emerging human capacity needs. The program seeks to accomplish this goal first through the recruitment, placement and support of diverse health professionals at the junior, mid and senior levels. These program participants include fellows, interns, corporate volunteers and Foreign Service National professionals. The program then provides substantial performance management and career development support to participants, including annual working planning assistance, and ensures that professional development opportunities are available.

Looking to the future, GHFP-II also seeks to establish a pool of highly-qualified global health professionals that will ensure the Agency's ongoing technical leadership and effectiveness. This objective is supported by an extensive outreach program that brings global health opportunities and specialized career advice to a diverse range of interested individuals, with a particular focus on those underrepresented in the field of global health.  

INTRODUCTION:
The Nutrition and Food Security intern will be assigned to the Nutrition Division, Office of Health, Infectious Disease and Nutrition, Global Health Bureau, with rotations to the Bureau for Food Security, Office of Country Strategies and Implementation/Technical Division and Office of Agricultural Research and Policy. The intern will contribute to objectives of both Presidential initiatives: Global Health and Feed the Future.

Through Feed the Future (FTF) and the Global Health Initiative (GHI), the United States is supporting country-owned programs to address the root causes of undernutrition and improve the future potential of millions of people. Nutrition is integrated in both initiatives to ensure mothers and young children have access to nutritious food and quality health services. USAID uses evidence-based approaches to ensure good nutrition and supports innovative new approaches that will improve outcomes for the most vulnerable populations.

USAID is pleased to be part of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) global movement, which encourages increased political commitment and programmatic alignment to accelerate reductions in global hunger and undernutrition, and promotes a focus on the 1,000 day window of opportunity from pregnancy to a child's second birthday.

For more information on the Agency's work in nutrition and food security, and how they relate to FTF and GHI, see:

LEARNING OBJECTIVE:
  • Gain understanding of how USAID integrated nutrition and food security activities are implemented and monitored in a variety of settings.
  • Gain experience in development-related project management essentials with a focus on nutrition, health care for women and children, water and sanitation, and food security activities.
  • Gain understanding in how US Government foreign assistance is managed.
ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES:
  • Prepare reports, concept/position papers, correspondence/briefers/talking points, and other documentation related to nutrition and food security as requested.
  • Review and comment on draft documents (e.g., Implementing Partners' implementation plans, annual reports, fact sheets, and research briefs).
  • Support analytic and knowledge management work concerning nutrition, public health, gender, poverty, and food security as directed, and assist in presenting findings to relevant audiences.
  • Perform administrative and program/project assistance functions as needed for nutrition and BFS teams supporting Washington and country-based activities., e.g. SPRING, FANTA, GAIN, NCRSP, Child Blindness, etc.
  • Provide support for USAID's global leadership with the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) movement and the 1000 Days Partnership as requested.
  • Participate in developing/strengthening the nutrition component of FTF research programs, as needed.
  • Collaborate on FTF nutrition-related capacity building activities (e.g., assist in: planning the CAADP Southern Africa Regional Nutrition Workshop, developing agriculture-nutrition online course, and preparing training reference materials).
  • Other tasks or responsibilities may be assigned based on organizational and programming needs, and the intern's interests and skill set.
QUALIFICATIONS:
Qualified candidates will be enrolled in, or a *recent graduate of, a graduate program related to public health, nutrition, agriculture, food policy, international development or a related field.

Qualified candidates will have strong writing and analytic skills, strong interpersonal skills, the ability to work independently, and good data analytical skills. Experience or interest working in resource-challenged development settings is preferred but not necessary.

US Citizenship or US Permanent Residency required.

All applications must be submitted by April 5, 2013 at 5:00 pm eastern time.

* 'Recent graduate' is defined as obtaining his/her degree no more than one year prior to the internship anticipated start time.

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