Work With Us
Research Collaborations with ELLA
The Education Lab for Latin America (ELLA) at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) is committed to fostering rigorous, policy-relevant research in education policy. We provide a platform to promote collaborations between Harvard PhD students and governments, NGOs, and research institutions to conduct high-impact research that informs education policies across Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).
We invite governments, NGOs, foundations, and research institutions interested in rigorous education policy research to collaborate with ELLA. Our matchmaking process consists of the following steps;
We encourage organizations seeking an impact evaluation or policy analysis to submit a proposal. Proposals should outline the policy challenge, describe the education initiative(s) under study, and specify research questions of interest.
We facilitate matchmaking between PhD students and organizations based on their research needs, methodological expertise and dissertation work.
Some examples of projects our PhD students are interested include:
- Studying early childhood interventions: Measuring the effects of preschool and early childhood education programs on cognitive and social development.
- Leveraging education technology to reduce inequality: Designing and evaluating EdTech interventions aimed at enhancing access to high-quality and personalized learning tools and developing digital skills for disadvantaged students.
- Expanding access to higher education and labor market opportunities: Examining initiatives that improve access to higher education and high-growth employment opportunities for talented, low-income students.
- Mitigating the effects of education disruptions: Evaluating the impact of conflicts, migration, and climate-related crises on student learning.
- Evaluating education governance reforms: Assessing the impact of decentralization and centralization policies on learning outcomes.
Projects will be evaluated based on their relevance to education policy, their potential to impact thousands of students across LAC, their alignment with ELLA’s mission of producing rigorous and policy-relevant research, and the commitment of partner organizations to support data collection, implementation, and evaluation.
Once matched, students and partner organizations co-develop research questions, define methodologies, structure a research plan for collaboration, and evaluate its feasibility.
PhD researchers co-lead the research study with the support of the partner organization and faculty members at Harvard. Findings will be shared with partners to co-interpret results, incorporate them into the innovation process, and disseminate them through policy briefs, academic publications, and workshops.
What Does a PhD Researcher Bring to Your Organization?
Affiliated PhD students bring a unique combination of:
- Expertise in experimental and quasi-experimental methods (RCTs, difference-in-differences, regression discontinuity, etc.) as well as qualitative methods.
- Deep knowledge of education policy and economics of education in Latin America and the Caribbean.
- Hands-on experience designing and implementing impact evaluations.
- Analytical, strategic, and problem-solving skills to generate actionable insights from data.
- Commitment to producing research that informs policy and practice.
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions for partnering with ELLA
You are ready to submit a proposal to ELLA when your project is research-ready. We want to clearly understand what you do and how we can work together. You should be able to submit:
- Your research design, complete with:
- a clearly defined comparison group
- transparent rules for program eligibility and rollout
- willingness to coordinate evaluation design before implementation decisions are finalized
- Information about your data
- ELLA will need access to your implementation and assignment data when working together
- Information about program content and background
- Your organization must be officially registered as a legal entity in order to collaborate with ELLA. Unfortunately, we are unable to work with organizations or programs that are not legally registered.
When working together, ELLA will require access to:
- implementation and assignment data
- program content
- data over time
- ELLA may request access to other details (dependent on the project)
Clear consistent communication and a willingness to collaborate with ELLA staff, ELLA researchers, and partnering organizations is key to a successful partnership.
If you feel confident about your project details, then you may complete the collaboration form at the bottom of this page. Please complete it with as much detail as possible. If you are unable to answer many of the questions in the survey (i.e. program details, available data, potential comparison groups, timeline, etc.) that may be a signal that the project needs further development before a research collaboration is feasible.
If you have completed the survey with adequate detail, please email Assistant Director, Emma Zavala at: ezavala@gse.harvard.edu. We will review your completed form before responding.
Support our Ph.D. Affiliates
To expand the access to high-quality research and strengthen collaboration between PhD researchers and NGOs, and governments in the region, ELLA is actively seeking external funding partners who can fully or partially fund PhD affiliates’ work. Funding will be used to cover research stipends for PhD students and other indirect research costs associated with conducting collaborative projects that contribute to evidence-based policymaking in education in LAC.
Contributions from foundations, philanthropists or international organizations are welcome. The total cost of supporting a PhD student is approximately $18,000 per semester ($36,000 per academic year). These contributions are complemented by Harvard to guarantee students receive regular financial aid.
Contact Us
Please email Assistant Director, Emma Zavala at: ezavala@gse.harvard.edu with questions.