Impact evaluations have become routine elements of programme implementation due to their ability to build accountability and learning for policymakers, non-governmental organisations, donors and affected populations. Conducting impact evaluations in the real world can be a difficult process and may require a blend of techniques to obtain impact estimates. This course builds upon the introductory course on impact evaluation and provides a hands-on approach to estimating and analysing causal impacts using various techniques. These include randomised control trials and designs, regression discontinuity design, difference in differences, propensity score matching and instrumental variables method. Students will learn how to conduct an in-depth econometric estimation/analysis of causal impacts.
Audiovisual lessons will be provided together with datasets and step-by-step analysis guides to using various impact evaluation techniques in Stata software. Lessons and case studies will give participants a knowledge base to help them understand the applicability of methods to a given set of circumstances. The final assignment/exam, will put the student’s newly acquired skills to the test by presenting her/him with a dataset and the task to perform a mock impact evaluation. Interested students should have intermediate knowledge of statistical analyses or econometrics. For example, they should already know how to obtain descriptive statistics, conduct t-tests and basic regression analysis. They should also be familiar with the Stata data processing and data analysis software.