Policy Modelling Fellowships – 2024

Measles and Polio Policy Modelling Fellowship

The South African Centre for Epidemiological Modelling & Analysis (SACEMA) is a research centre based at Stellenbosch University. SACEMA specialises in modelling and analysis to improve health in South Africa and across the African continent. Trained in mathematics, biology, physics, economics, statistics, and epidemiology, our researchers bridge disciplines to understand disease dynamics and improve real-world outcomes.

There are few disease modellers with a policy focus based in Africa, and policy-relevant modelling relies on modellers’ relationships with ministries of health, who hold key data and who ultimately determine policy. While several exceptional modelling training programs exist, there is a need to develop capacity for practical, data-driven modelling among people working within, or with strong relationships to, African Ministries of Health. Our vision is to foster a more informed, agile response to epidemics in Africa in which interventions are backed, where possible, by widely available data. Policy modelling fellows will be trained, mentored and supported on projects with real-world impact, focusing on vaccination programme optimization and immunity estimation, and will bring modelling insights directly to government stakeholders and decision makers. Each fellowship will include a focus on polioviruses or measles and in exceptional cases fellows may work on both diseases.

 

2023 Policy Modelling Fellows

About the Policy Modelling Fellow

Requirements:

  • Training or work experience in a quantitative field (e.g. statistics, computer programming, applied mathematics, etc.).
  • Established working relationship with Ministry of Health decision makers in your country.
  • Access or ability to gain access to sub-national measles or polio vaccine and incidence data from your country’s surveillance system through the Ministry of Health.
  • Technical aptitude in learning and applying public health modelling tools and methods.
  • Some programming experience.
  • Ability and willingness to travel to South Africa for 6-8 weeks mid 2025 and 2 weeks late 2025 as needed for fellowship-related activities.
  • Other availability of approximately 5-8 hours a week from February to November 2025. 

Recommendations:

  • Experience in working with public health data.
  • Familiarity with disease modelling techniques.
  • Experience or familiarity with public health challenges in Africa.
  • Experience programming in R (or related programming language).

Duties and deadlines:

The Policy Modelling Fellow will develop country-specific policy questions, model the potential impact of measles and/or polio outbreak scenarios and interventions, and present model outputs and recommendations to local policymakers.

Data Acquisition:

  • Acquire sub-national measles or polio surveillance data through the Ministry of Health (e.g. data on routine vaccination delivery, supplemental immunization activities, and age-specific incidence data) (remote, by middle March 2025).

Technical Training and Development:

  • Complete preparatory R course if necessary (remote, by end of April 2025).
  • Attend MMED workshop (in-person in Cape Town, late June 2025).
  • Undergo training in immunity estimation methods (in-person at SACEMA, following MMED workshop, for 4 to 6 weeks).

Policy Modelling and stakeholder engagement:

  • Meet with Ministry of Health and/or national vaccination programme stakeholders to collaboratively develop country-specific policy questions, with mentorship and guidance from SACEMA (remote, first meeting by end of April 2025).
  • Apply immunity estimation methods and outbreak modelling techniques to country data to address research questions (in-person at SACEMA, following MMED workshop, for 4 to 6 weeks).
  • Develop policy recommendations based on immunity estimates and model outputs and prepare policy brief document (remote, by middle October 2025).
  • Organise dissemination meeting with Ministry of Health and/or national vaccination programme stakeholders (remote, by end of fellowship period).
  • Visit SACEMA to refine presentations and finalise policy documents (in-person at SACEMA, between middle October and middle November 2025)
  • Host in-country stakeholder engagement meetings, attended by SACEMA staff (in-person in your country, by end of fellowship period).

Funding support:

  • Fully funded travel and board when visiting South Africa.
  • Generous fellowship stipend (subject to meeting fellowship deadlines).
  • The possibility of child-care support during visits to South Africa.
  • Limited support for in-country dissemination meeting.
  • All course fees are fully funded.

 

Application guidelines:

Location: Remote within Sub-Saharan Africa with visits to SACEMA South Africa

Duration: 10 Months

Start date: 12 February 2025

Application Deadline: 5 December 2024

Please make sure that you have the following required materials ready:

  1. Comprehensive CV highlighting skills and past projects relevant to the fellowship.
  2. Letter of support for data access from a duly authorised official, OR a clear written plan for how you intend to acquire the necessary data. This letter or plan must mention who will be involved from the Ministry of Health or national vaccination programme, and must include mention of sub-national data on polio or measles vaccination, as well as age-specific incidence data (if applicable).
  3. Letter of support from your employer/institution stating that you will be allowed to participate in the programme should you be selected OR an explanation of how you will make time for the fellowship.

Click here to apply!

In light of the gender gap in mathematical modelling and data analysis fields, women are encouraged to apply.

Shortlisted candidates will be given an opportunity to complete a short exercise aimed at assessing basic programming, data analysis and communication skills.

Further enquires may be directed to: Fellowship Manager, Shadé Horn at shade@sun.ac.za