Research Officer

About The George Institute

The George Institute for Global Health was established in 1999 with a mission to improve the health of millions of people worldwide, particularly underserved populations, by challenging the status quo and using innovative approaches to prevent and treat the world’s biggest killers: non-communicable diseases and injury.

With offices in Australia, China, India and the UK, our 700+ people support 245+ active projects and clinical trials across 50+ countries, with 400+ more staff across our social enterprises. We focus on the global health challenges that cause the greatest loss of life, the greatest impairment of life quality and the most substantial economic burden, particularly in resource-poor settings.

Together with our academic partners, UNSW Sydney in Australia, Manipal Academy of Higher Education in India and Imperial College London in the United Kingdom, we work with a global network of collaborators, undertaking clinical, population and health systems research.

Our experts are among the most cited globally, bestowed accolades for excellence and innovation, and regularly participate in policy fora. Our research is published in leading academic journals, referenced in policy documents, and recognised for its excellence, innovation and impact. We are designated a WHO Collaborating Centre (WHO CC) for Injury Prevention & Trauma Care, and a WHO CC for Population Salt Reduction. Since 1999, we have raised more than $1 billion for research and produced over 10,000 peer-reviewed publications and other academic outputs.

What we do

• Lead world-class, large-scale clinical trials, epidemiological studies and health systems research to transform treatments and healthcare delivery.
• Look beyond single diseases, across the life course, to identify patient-centred approaches to care that can be implemented at scale.
• Develop low-cost, innovative solutions to global unmet needs
• Drive our global impact through a program of research, advocacy, thought leadership and disruptive social entrepreneurship

For more information about The George Institute, visit www.georgeinstitute.org.

The George Institute India

The George Institute, a wholly owned legal not-for-profit Indian research institute, has been conducting research related activities in India since 2002. The George Institute India’s mission mirrors that of the parent organization, namely the discovery and implementation of solutions to chronic and disabling health problems through research, policy development and capacity building.

A number of large-scale projects in population, health systems and clinical research, funded by a diverse group of sponsors, both public and private, are conducted in India. The George Institute India comprises two distinct operating groups: Research and Development, and Infrastructure and Resources. It has two separate offices - in Hyderabad and New Delhi, where the research staff and senior management are based.

Context and Role

Communities and civil society are pivotal to ensuring that health policies and services respond to community needs, leaving no one behind. To reach this goal, there is a great need for a shared vision that defines and shapes civil society and communities’ roles in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals along with the ability to carry out those roles.

Social participation for health (SPH), where social actors group their collective potential to improve population health, is an umbrella term for community action, public engagement, citizen participation, and deliberative processes. SPH mechanisms balancing interests and powers of communities, civil society, decision-makers and academia have improved access to and uptake of health services. SPH has organically arisen during the HIV pandemic, involving “key populations,” i.e., those facing high HIV risk such as people who inject drugs, sex workers, and transgender people globally, but in particular ways in Vietnam, Thailand and India. SPH is now emerging with prominence in global advocacy related to Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which aims to ensure all populations receive all services they need without incurring financial risk, ensuring that we “leave no one behind.” But who has and who can participate in decision-making related to UHC in these countries, how, and at what cost? Who does not and for what reasons? How can social participation for universal health coverage be made more inclusive? There is a need to establish participatory, transparent, and inclusive multi-stakeholder platforms for civil society and community to shape policy development, implementation, and evaluation.

SUNWAI (Social participation for Universal health coverage: evidence-informed NetWorks Advancing Inclusion), is a consortium supported by the National Institute of Health and Social Care Research (NIHR). SUNWAI in multiple Asian languages translates to “being heard” or “attended to.” The SUNWAI consortium seeks to institutionalise and deepen cross-regional research and action that advances the inclusion of key populations – specifically transgender communities in social participation for UHC, and to understand its contexts, mechanisms, outcomes, and costs.

 Our Objectives are:

1. To align, strengthen, evaluate, and sustain intra-and inter -country academic and civil society partnerships working on social participation of transgender populations for UHC with a specific emphasis on the “leave no one behind” agenda in Vietnam, India, and Thailand
2. To understand the contexts, mechanisms, outcomes, and costs of involving transgender populations in social participation for health initiatives as well as social participation (of any group) in UHC reform initiatives at national and subnational levels in each country
3. To co-produce country-specific as well as cross-country mechanisms intended to enhance meaningful inclusion of transgender populations in social participation for health geared towards achieving UHC
4. To evaluate/assess the relationship of these mechanisms to health system process goals from the perspective of community, civil society, government, and academic actors
5. To catalyse exchange and expansion of SUNWAI in the run-up to the endpoint of the Sustainable Development Goals in 2030 and beyond

The Research Fellow, with the team SUNWAI, and the broader SPHERE network will support rollout, conduct and management of the research component and capacity building activities under SUNWAI, with primary focus on India, but also in coordination with Vietnam and Thailand.

Reporting Relationships

Directly reports to Program Director, Health Equity with dotted line reporting to Dr. Arpita Ghosh from the Biostatistics Division, George Institute for Global Health, India. 

Duties and Key Responsibilities

The Research Fellow would be expected to:

• Assist with the development of identified resources and capacity building activities in collaboration with CEI leads and Work Package 4 (comparative case study and overall monitoring evaluation and learning) leads.
• Develop and operationalize a training package for the overall SUNWAI team as well as key subgroups with varying needs (eg. By country, by profile- i.e. doctoral cohort, research scholars, WP leads, PIs), which includes but is not limited to needs assessment, mobilization of resources, identification of resource persons and tools, support for participation, tracking of impact of training and more.
• Receive training as appropriate on legal, advocacy, and research tools and platforms to support Capacity Strengthening initiatives at the lead institutions, the funder and across the SUNWAI and SPHERE networks.
• Identify additional opportunities to impart training and collaborate on enhancing capacity within the lead and partnering institutions, other NIHR grantees and across the SUNWAI and SPHERE networks.
• Coordinate with WP 4 team leads on aspects and data pertaining to capacity strengthening and learning with support from country teams and the PIs
• Coordinate research management for SUNWAI including protocol development, tool development, desk and field based data collection oversight, planning, and conduct of research, support for research management including permissions, ethics review and oversight
• Support the rollout of SUNWAI, with contributions to development of protocol, coordinating its review and approval, research administration tasks, conduct of fieldwork with a particular emphasis on India, but also coordination with Vietnam and Thailand. 
• Provide technical inputs/review of country research workplans to align with SUNWAI goals. 
• Support dissemination and advocacy related activities in coordination with relevant colleagues and teams at multilateral and national level. 

As a Team Member: 

• Participate in team meetings and activities relating to social participation for health and own work area
• Participate in special projects to improve processes, tools, systems and organisation;
• Take responsibility for personal learning and development and for setting achievable and meaningful work objectives and managing personal targets, meeting obligations of the Institute’s Performance Management and Development Policy
• Demonstrate commitment to GI’s values, including performing to an exceptionally high ethical standard and focus on integrity, collaboration and teamwork in all efforts.

Work, Health and Safety:

• Comply with GI’s Work Health and Safety Policy and related procedures, and similar policies which apply when visiting the premises of affiliates and collaborating sites.
• Promote and contribute to a safe, secure environment for staff and visitors.

Skills, Knowledge and Experience

• Postgraduate training in public health, political science, sociology, economics, or a related field
• Proven experience working on social change and the intersection of research and advocacy
• Experience working with rights based civil society organizations and specifically on social participation for health
• Experience working globally, with multilateral organizations, international NGOs or foundations, especially in relation to activities in resource constrained settings, including low- and middle-income countries (Prior experience in managing research programs or fieldwork in the South American, African and/or SE Asia regions, particularly Kenya, India, Argentina, Vietnam, and/or Thailand, would be a plus).
• Experience working in complex environments, managing relationships with external partners and engaging senior internal and external stakeholders.
• A self-starter, dynamic, entrepreneurial, with experience taking ownership and exercising leadership on tasks that require managing and leading teams, ensuring delivery of project workplans to deadlines
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work well flexibly, both independently and with a variety of teams.
• Excellent writing skills and experience with some thought leadership (writing blogs, articles, editorials).

How to apply:

Interested candidates should send their resume with full contact details, current and expected CTC/salary. Clearly mentioning the job title Research Fellow, Health Equity in the subject line to hrindia@georgeinstitute.org.in by 16^th February 2026.

Our big and bold mission to improve the health of millions of people worldwide needs a diverse and innovative team to deliver it.  So we foster a dynamic, inclusive and flexible workplace where each individual can bring their best selves to work.

Everyone is encouraged to apply, including people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, people with a disability, people of all gender identities and sexual orientations, and mature-aged adults.