Senior Water Researcher - GiveWell

About GiveWell

GiveWell’s mission is to help people in need as much as we can by researching the most cost‑effective ways to save and improve lives. We direct hundreds of millions of dollars annually to high-impact programs, and we are scaling our research capacity to manage even larger grantmaking portfolios.

The Role

As a Senior Water Researcher, you will lead ambitious research agendas to direct tens of millions of dollars annually toward the most cost-effective water interventions. You will own grant investigations from initial research questions through to final recommendations.

Key Responsibilities

• Research Leadership: Create and lead research agendas related to water quality, access, and infrastructure.
• Evidence Synthesis: Combine rigorous evidence review, cost-effectiveness modeling, and expert consultation to inform grantmaking.
• Strategic Decision Making: Identify the most impactful questions to answer and pivot away from low-priority tasks to maximize efficiency.
• External Representation: Communicate research findings to the public and donors, and represent GiveWell to external partners.
• Mentorship: Advise and mentor other researchers on the team.

About You

• Education: Quantitatively oriented advanced degree (e.g., epidemiology, environmental engineering, environmental health, public health, or economics).
• Experience: Substantial professional experience in the water sector, WASH, environmental health modeling, or program implementation/evaluation.
• Analytical Rigor: Ability to interrogate complex problems, maintain high standards of evidence, and clearly communicate confidence levels.
• Values: Alignment with GiveWell’s core values of truth-seeking, independence, and impact-focused research.

Team Structure

Our research department is organized into eight teams, including Water, Livelihoods, Malaria, Nutrition, Vaccination, New Areas, Cross-Cutting, and Commons. You will join a lean, high-performing team that values free-flowing feedback and evidence-based decision-making.

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary: $308,000 (NYC/SF Bay Area) or $280,000 (All other US/International locations).
• Benefits:
  • Fully funded health, dental, vision, and life insurance.
  • 4 weeks PTO plus 1 week organization-wide summer break.
  • 16 weeks fully paid parental leave.
  • Ergonomic home workstation or coworking membership.
  • 5% 403(b) retirement contribution (US-based).

Important Notes

• Application Deadline: November 26, 2026.
• Location: Remote-first. We currently hire in the US, UK, Canada, Switzerland, and Germany. You must be based in one of these countries or willing to relocate.
• Visa Sponsorship: Available for the US on a case-by-case basis; not available for other locations.