Remote Careers in Global Health Policy & International Affairs — A Guide for Researchers, Analysts & Writers

Levi Cheptora

Fri, 24 Oct 2025

Hello — this version targets international-affairs researchers, policy analysts and writers who want remote/online experience in health, medical policy, global governance, and humanitarian health programs. Read it as a playbook: what to learn, how to show it, where to apply, and how to win the interview.

Quick orientation first: the UN, WHO and major global health platforms regularly list remote, rostered and consultancy roles suitable for policy researchers, M&E specialists, remote program officers, health policy writers, analysts and communicators. Use specialized portals (Devex, ReliefWeb, Idealist) plus targeted think tanks and foundations to find remote editorial, research, policy analysis and adviser roles.

1 — Remote roles you should know (what hiring managers actually list)

Common remote roles in the intersection of international affairs and health include:

• Health Policy Analyst / Researcher (policy briefs, literature reviews, modelling support)

• Global Health Advisor / Consultant (short-term technical assistance)

• Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL / M&E) Specialist (remote data analysis, indicator design)

• Technical Writer / Science Writer / Communications for Global Health (reports, policy briefs, op-eds)

• Program Officer / Grants Manager (remote grant writing, reporting, partner coordination)

• Research Fellow / Think-tank Analyst (remote research projects, evidence syntheses)

• Remote Clinical Data/Registry Analyst (secondary analysis, policy-use datasets)

• Remote Evidence Synthesis Specialist (systematic reviews, rapid evidence summaries)

• Remote Policy Monitoring & Intelligence Analyst (track legislation, policy trends)

• Digital Health Policy/Product Researcher (telehealth regulation, digital health governance)

These roles value clear writing, policy analysis, evidence synthesis, stakeholder mapping, and remote collaboration skills (asynchronous comms, version control, good documentation).

2 — Degrees, credentials & certifications that open doors (practical map)

High-value degrees

• Master of International Affairs / International Relations (MA / MIA) — for policy analysis and diplomacy tracks

• Master of Public Policy (MPP) or Master of Public Administration (MPA) — policy design & evaluation

• Master of Public Health (MPH) or MSc Global Health — essential for technically credible health policy roles

• MSc Health Policy / Health Economics — for analytic, cost-effectiveness and financing roles

• PhD (social sciences, policy, epidemiology) — useful for fellowships and research-heavy roles but not mandatory for many remote analyst jobs

Practical, hireable certifications

• Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) Certificates — e.g., UNICEF M&E, Coursera/EdX M&E specializations

• Project Management Professional (PMP) — valuable for program management and grants roles.

• Data & Evidence: courses in R/Python for policy analysis, SQL, and evidence synthesis (Cochrane Methods).

• Human Subjects / Ethics: CITI Program — required when working with health data or research involving human subjects.

• Global Health & Policy Short Courses: WHO e-learning, Johns Hopkins Global Health (Coursera), UNITAR policy courses.

• Humanitarian standards: Sphere, Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) awareness.

Which to pick first?

• For policy writing & analysis: MPP/MPA or targeted policy short courses + evidence-synthesis training.

• For technical global health roles: MPH + practical epidemiology / data skills.

• For consultancies/freelancing: project management (PMP), MEL + portfolio of 2 relevant deliverables (policy brief + evidence synthesis).

3 — Free vs paid learning (curated, role-specific)

Free / low-cost (high ROI)

• WHO Academy / WHO eLearning — free modules on global health topics.

• Coursera (audit mode free): Johns Hopkins, Imperial College courses on global health & health policy.

• EdX / MIT OpenCourseWare: policy analysis, statistics, economics modules.

• CITI Program: free access via some universities or low-cost courses for research ethics.

• ReliefWeb Knowledge Hub & UN e-learning resources.

Paid (worth it if you want acceleration)

• Coursera Specializations (Global Health, Evidence Synthesis, Health Policy) — certificates help your LinkedIn profile.

• PM training for PMP (paid).

• Short courses from Harvard Kennedy School Executive Education, London School of Economics (LSE), SOAS — good for credibility.

• Professional M&E credentials (ALNAP/ACAPS for humanitarian analysis).

4 — Debunking common myths (evidence first)

Myth — “You need a PhD to publish policy work or get a remote global health job.”
Reality — Many roles — especially policy analysis, MEL, communications and advisory consultancies — hire MSc/MPH/Masters + demonstrable outputs (policy briefs, systematic reviews, stakeholder memos). Hiring is increasingly output-driven: show 2–3 concise case studies. (See Devex job listings and ReliefWeb consultancies for role requirements.)

Myth — “All global health roles are field-based; remote work is rare.”
Reality — UN rosters, WHO, foundations and think tanks regularly recruit remote consultants, remote program officers, and remote research analysts — especially for evidence synthesis, policy writing, and data analysis tasks.

Myth — “Only people with prior NGO experience can enter."
Reality — Cross-sector hires (academia → think tanks → consultancies → NGOs) are common. Transferable skills — rigorous literature synthesis, policy framing, stakeholder mapping, and written communication — are often enough.

5 — Portfolio hacks, application & outreach strategies that work

1. One-page policy case study (PDF + LinkedIn featured): structure as problem → evidence base → policy options → recommended metrics. Use 1 figure and 3 concrete recommendations.

2. Public deliverables: publish short policy briefs on Medium, ResearchGate, or an institutional blog. Tag with keywords: “policy brief”, “global health governance”, “evidence synthesis”.

3. Modular portfolio: include (a) 1 policy brief, (b) 1 systematic or rapid review summary, (c) 1 stakeholder memo or briefing note — each 1–3 pages.

4. Reproducible analysis sample (for data roles): GitHub repo with a Jupyter notebook that reproduces a small policy-relevant analysis (e.g., vaccination coverage trends). Include a README that explains policy implications.

5. Cold LinkedIn outreach formula: 2 lines — why you, one metric, and a link to your featured brief. Example: “Hi [Name] — I’m a policy analyst (MPH) who led a rapid evidence synthesis that reduced policy options from 20→4 for vaccine financing. I applied for [Role] and would love 10 minutes to explain how I’d hit the ground running. — [Name] (link).”

6. Apply AND message: apply through the portal (UN/NGO/think tank) and send a short message to a hiring manager or recruiter referencing a specific line in the job description.

7. Volunteer micro-projects: offer a 10-hour rapid evidence summary to a small NGO to collect a client testimonial for your portfolio.

6 — 100+ categorized hiring platforms, organizations, think tanks & resources (live links)

Use this list as a hunting ground. Bookmark, build a tracker and apply strategically. The list emphasizes global health, policy, UN/UN agencies, think tanks, NGOs, consultancies and specialist job boards for international affairs + health policy.

A. Global job platforms & remote general boards

1. LinkedIn Jobs — https://www.linkedin.com/jobs

2. Indeed — https://www.indeed.com/

3. Glassdoor — https://www.glassdoor.com/Job/index.htm

4. FlexJobs — https://www.flexjobs.com/

5. Remote.co — https://remote.co/remote-jobs/

6. We Work Remotely — https://weworkremotely.com/

7. Remote OK — https://remoteok.com/

8. Idealist (nonprofit jobs, remote filter) — https://www.idealist.org/en/remote-jobs

9. Devex Jobs (global development & health) — https://www.devex.com/jobs/

10. ReliefWeb Jobs (humanitarian & UN listings) — https://reliefweb.int/jobs

B. UN, UN agencies & multilateral organizations (careers & rosters)

11. UN Careers — https://careers.un.org/

12. UN Jobs (UNjobnet) — https://www.unjobnet.org/

13. UNDP Jobs/Careers — https://jobs.undp.org/

14. UNICEF Careers — https://www.unicef.org/about/employ

15. WHO Careers — https://www.who.int/careers

16. World Bank Careers — https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/careers

17. IMF Careers — https://www.imf.org/en/Careers

18. World Health Organization regional career pages (e.g., SEARO) — https://www.who.int/regions

19. PAHO Careers — https://www.paho.org/en/careers

20. The Global Fund Careers — https://www.theglobalfund.org/en/careers/

C. Global health alliances, foundations & major funders

21. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance vacancies — https://www.gavi.org/our-alliance/work-us/vacancies

22. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Careers — https://www.gatesfoundation.org/about/careers

23. Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) Careers — https://www.clintonhealthaccess.org/careers/

24. Wellcome Trust Jobs — https://wellcome.org/about-us/jobs

25. Rockefeller Foundation Careers — https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/about-us/careers/

26. The Global Financing Facility (GFF) — https://www.globalfinancingfacility.org/work-us

D. Think tanks & policy institutes (research & analyst roles)

27. Brookings Institution Careers — https://www.brookings.edu/careers/

28. Chatham House (Royal Institute of International Affairs) Careers — https://www.chathamhouse.org/about-us/work-us/careers

29. RAND Corporation Careers — https://www.rand.org/about/working.html

30. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Careers — https://www.csis.org/careers

31. Center for Global Development (CGD) Jobs — https://www.cgdev.org/careers

32. Overseas Development Institute (ODI) — https://odi.org/en/about/working-at-odi/

33. Atlantic Council Careers — https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/careers/

34. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace — https://carnegieendowment.org/about/careers

35. European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) — https://www.ecfr.eu/careers

36. Igarapé Institute — https://igarape.org.br/en/careers/ (policy & data)

E. Health policy research centers & public health institutes

37. Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) Careers — https://www.healthdata.org/about/careers

38. Center for Global Health Science & Security — https://www.cghs.columbia.edu/ (check affiliated careers)

39. Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) Careers — https://www.kff.org/about/careers/

40. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Jobs — https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/what-we-do/nih-almanac/nih-employment

41. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Careers — https://www.cdc.gov/hrmo/careers/index.html

42. CDC Foundation Careers — https://www.cdcfoundation.org/careers

43. European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) Jobs — https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/about-us/work-us

F. NGOs & humanitarian organizations (policy, advocacy, remote roles)

44. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Jobs & Roster — https://www.msf.org/recruitment

45. International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Careers — https://www.icrc.org/en/who-we-are/jobs

46. Amnesty International Careers — https://www.amnesty.org/en/careers/

47. Human Rights Watch Jobs — https://www.hrw.org/careers

48. Save the Children Careers — https://www.savethechildren.net/careers

49. Oxfam International Careers — https://www.oxfam.org/en/work-us

50. CARE International Jobs — https://www.care-international.org/careers

51. International Rescue Committee (IRC) Careers — https://www.rescue.org/careers

52. Mercy Corps Careers — https://www.mercycorps.org/careers/

53. PATH Careers — https://www.path.org/careers/

54. RTI International Careers (research & policy) — https://www.rti.org/careers

G. Consultancy firms & advisory groups (global health & policy consulting)

55. Dalberg (global development advisory) Careers — https://dalberg.com/careers/

56. Palladium Careers — https://www.thepalladiumgroup.com/careers

57. FSG Careers — https://www.fsg.org/careers

58. McKinsey (Global Health / Public Sector roles) — https://www.mckinsey.com/careers

59. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Public Sector / Global Health — https://www.bcg.com/careers

60. KPMG Global Health practice jobs — https://home.kpmg/xx/en/home/careers.html

61. PwC (Health Industries & Public Sector) — https://www.pwc.com/careers

H. Academic & university research jobs (policy centers)

62. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Jobs — https://publichealth.jhu.edu/about/careers

63. Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) Jobs & fellowships — https://www.hks.harvard.edu/about/careers

64. London School of Economics (LSE) Careers / policy centers — https://www.lse.ac.uk/jobs

65. SOAS University of London — https://www.soas.ac.uk/jobs/

66. University research job boards (check specific centers, e.g., Global Health Institutes)

I. Specialized policy & development job boards

67. EuroBrussels (EU policy & NGO jobs) — https://www.eurobrussels.com/

68. DevNetJobs (development jobs) — https://www.devnetjobs.org/

69. ImpactPool (UN & multilateral jobs) — https://www.impactpool.org/

70. UNjoblist (aggregated UN jobs) — https://unjoblist.org/

71. CharityJob / CharityVillage (nonprofit jobs) — https://charityjob.co.uk/ / https://charityvillage.com/

72. Bond Jobs (UK international development) — https://jobs.bond.org.uk/

J. Fellowships, internships & targeted programs (launch experience)

73. UN Young Professionals Programme (YPP) — https://careers.un.org/lbw/Home.aspx?viewtype=IP

74. Fulbright Program (research & policy placements) — https://foreign.fulbrightonline.org/

75. Chevening Scholarships & placements — https://www.chevening.org/

76. Schwarzman Scholars — https://www.schwarzmanscholars.org/

77. Wilson Center Fellowships — https://www.wilsoncenter.org/fellowships

78. Carnegie Fellowship Programs — https://carnegieendowment.org/programs/fellowships

79. World Bank Young Professionals Program — https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/careers/programs-and-internships/young-professionals-program

K. Research marketplaces & freelance expert networks

80. Upwork (freelance research, writing) — https://www.upwork.com/

81. Freelancer.com — https://www.freelancer.com/

82. Kolabtree (scientific freelancing) — https://www.kolabtree.com/

83. GLG (expert network) — https://glginsights.com/

84. Catalant (consulting experts) — https://gocatalant.com/

85. Toptal (subject-matter experts) — https://www.toptal.com/ (check policy/research categories)

L. Monitoring & Evaluation, Evidence & Methods resources

86. Cochrane (evidence synthesis roles & fellowships) — https://www.cochrane.org/jobs

87. Campbell Collaboration — https://www.campbellcollaboration.org/

88. Evidence Aid — https://evidenceaid.org/ (volunteer rapid evidence summaries)

89. Global Evidence Synthesis Initiative (GESI) resources — https://www.gevidence.org/

90. CLEAR (Centers for Learning on Evaluation and Results) jobs/training — https://www.betterevaluation.org/en/organisations/clear

M. Regional & country hubs (useful for regional remote roles)

91. Africa Health Placements / Africa CDC jobs — https://africacdc.org/ & https://www.africacdc.org/careers/

92. Asia Development Jobs / Asia Foundation Careers — https://asiafoundation.org/careers/

93. Latin America & Caribbean job portals (devex regional filters) — https://www.devex.com/jobs?region=Latin+America+%26+Caribbean

94. EuroBrussels (already listed) — https://www.eurobrussels.com/

95. Pacific Islands & regional orgs (check SPC / WHO Pacific pages)

N. Media, policy journals & communications roles

96. Foreign Policy (careers & editorial) — https://foreignpolicy.com/about/careers/

97. The Lancet Jobs (research & policy roles) — https://www.thelancet.com/about/jobs

98. Health Affairs Jobs & fellowship page — https://www.healthaffairs.org/about/careers/

99. DevPolicy Blog & editorial opportunities — https://devpolicy.org/about/

100. Project Syndicate (commentary opportunities) — https://www.project-syndicate.org/about

O. Recruiters & talent platforms specializing in development & policy

101. ImpactPool (already listed) — https://www.impactpool.org/

102. ProBono Australia Jobs / regional recruiters (for policy roles) — https://probonoaustralia.com.au/jobs/

103. Michael Page / Page Executive (public sector & policy) — https://www.michaelpage.com/

104. Kincannon & Reed (global health executive search) — https://www.k-r.com/

105. EPM Scientific (life science & policy recruitment) — https://epmscientific.com/

P. Extra learning & standards (WHO, UNITAR, CITI, Harvard)

106. WHO eLearning/Academy — https://www.who.int/learn

107. UNITAR (UN Institute for Training and Research) courses — https://www.unitar.org/

108. CITI Program (human subjects research ethics) — https://about.citiprogram.org/

109. Harvard Kennedy School Executive Education — https://www.hks.harvard.edu/educational-programs/executive-education

110. Coursera (many global health & policy courses) — https://www.coursera.org/

111. EdX — https://www.edx.org/

Tip: create a simple spreadsheet with columns: Platform, Org, Role Title, Link, Date Applied, Follow-up action, Contact (LinkedIn). Prioritize 15 targets and personalize each application.

7 — What actually gets you interviews (quick checklist)

• Short policy brief (1-2 pages) that demonstrates you can convert evidence into 3 actionable recommendations.

• One reproducible analytical deliverable (not long)—a 4-slide summary + one figure.

• A written samples folder: op-ed, policy memo, and a technical annex.

• Clear remote-work signals on your CV: list tools (Slack, Google Workspace, Git/GitHub, Zotero/EndNote), and note “Remote collaboration: timezone overlap management, async workflows.”

• Two references who can speak to your written outputs and remote delivery.

8 — Application templates (two lines that get replies)

LinkedIn message to hiring manager:

Hi [Name] — I’m a policy analyst (MPH/MIA) with hands-on rapid evidence syntheses on [topic]. I applied for [Role] and can share a 2-page brief that directly answers your key deliverables. Are you available for 10 minutes this week? — [Name] (link to brief)

Short cold email subject:

Policy Analyst — Rapid evidence brief on [topic] (2-page sample attached)

9 — 30/60/90 day plan for getting remote experience (practical)

• Days 1–30: Choose target role type (policy analyst / MEL / writer). Finish 1 policy brief; publish it on a platform (Medium, ResearchGate) and add to LinkedIn Featured. Apply to 10 curated roles (Devex, ReliefWeb, 3 think tanks).

• Days 31–60: Complete 1 relevant short course (WHO eLearning or Coursera). Volunteer a 10-hour rapid evidence summary for a small NGO or start a paid micro-consult on Upwork/Kolabtree.

• Days 61–90: Network — 5 targeted LinkedIn outreaches/week; apply to fellowships; refine portfolio based on feedback.