Job Description

WBG Pioneer - Research Intern

Job #:
req37816
Organization:
World Bank
Grade:
T4 (No-fee)
Location:
Washington, DC,United States Hiring Manager:Tea Trumbic

Required Language(s):
English
Preferred Language(s):
Closing Date:
8/12/2026 (11:59pm UTC)

WBG Pioneers, the World Bank Group’s Internship Program, offers undergraduate and postgraduate students a high impact learning experience at the heart of global development. Participants gain hands on experience in a diverse and dynamic environment, contribute fresh perspectives and innovative ideas, and connect with international professionals working to end poverty on a livable planet.

WBG Pioneer

Background/Organizational Context

The World Bank Group’s
Women, Business and the Law (WBL) project examines laws and regulations
affecting women’s prospects as entrepreneurs and employees across 190
economies. Its goal is to inform policy discussions on how to remove legal
restrictions on women and promote research on how to improve women’s economic
inclusion. The Women, Business and the Law index serves as a road map
for reform by capturing three interdependent pillars that together shape
women’s access to jobs: laws, policies and institutions, and
enforcement perceptions across ten topics: Safety, Mobility, Work,
Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Childcare, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension.

Duties and Responsibilities

The
fellow will primarily work on data collection and analysis for Women, Business
and the Law. The position requires the ability to work in a fast-paced and multicultural
environment, strong analytical and research skills as well as robust
detail-orientation. Duties of the fellow will include, but not be limited to,
the following:

• Conduct country and/or topic specific research on legislation impacting women’s economic empowerment in the context of WBL indicators.

• Research indicator-specific laws, regulations, and policies through primary data sources and publicly available information to support coding decisions.

• Support data analysis and the preparation of written outputs such as briefs, blogs or presentations.

• Assist with respondent outreach, including administering surveys to local experts, leading new local partners’ recruitment and maintaining existing networks, and collecting data on WBL indicators.

• Deliver updated information for WBL data, including assessing survey responses with primary data sources and following up with survey respondents until a final, verified country profile is produced.

• Work on knowledge and learning activities to help World Bank staff develop a more informed view on how legal gender equality relates to economic growth and poverty reduction.

• Substantially contribute to several of the Women, Business and the Law functions: production, dissemination, contributor relationship, management, website, media, data analysis, etc.

• Support the translation of project documents.

• Provide general support to the project, as required.

Selection Criteria

• Master’s degree combined with at least two years of relevant professional experience and knowledge of issues pertaining to women’s economic empowerment;

• Demonstrated research skills on comparative policy issues and understanding of substantive issues in one or more of the areas covered by the WBL report (Safety, Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Childcare, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension).

• Experience with data collection and surveys methods, as well as data management and analysis.

• Excellent writing and analytical skills. Ability to identify relationships and linkages between components and to synthesize information from disparate sources into a cohesive format.

• A positive attitude, the ability to take initiative to identify and resolve assignment-related issues and demonstrated close attention to detail.

• Proven ability to work independently, multitask, and to deal with rapidly shifting priorities under pressure.

• Ability to operate in a multicultural environment and interdisciplinary team and to build effective working relations with local and external counterparts.

• High level of energy, persistence, and drive for results given the agreed objectives and deadlines. Also, organized, patient, and detail oriented.

• Demonstrated interest in development work and the World Bank Group’s mission.

• Effective written and verbal communication skills in English. Proficiency in additional languages (particularly: Arabic, Chinese, French, Portuguese, Russian, or Spanish) preferred.

No-Fee Internship Eligibility
This position is offered under the WBG Pioneers No-Fee Internship Track. Students may be offered a no-fee STT appointment provided that they either: (a) are enrolled in a Master's, PhD, or similar graduate program during the entire internship (or are in the fifth year or higher of a degree program in countries where higher education is not divided into undergraduate and graduate stages) and provide an official letter from their university confirming that the internship fulfills academic requirements for at least one term of study; or (b) are enrolled in undergraduate or graduate studies and receive a stipend from their university at least equivalent to the minimum STT T1 fee level in effect at the start of the assignment, as confirmed by an official university letter.

Note Please limit your applications to a maximum of three positions. Applications exceeding this limit will not be considered.

WBG Culture Attributes:
1. Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
3. Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.

The World Bank Group values diversity and encourages all qualified candidates who are nationals of World Bank Group member countries to apply, regardless of gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability. Sub-Saharan African nationals, Caribbean nationals, and female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.