Sam F.

Since 2019, I have been independently supporting myself while pursuing my B.A. in International Affairs part-time, working full-time across the NGO, humanitarian, and data science sectors. This dual commitment has built six years of progressive experience spanning data science, machine learning, project management, and monitoring and evaluation, equipping me to bridge quantitative analysis with real-world development and humanitarian challenges. I bring a distinctive combination of technical rigour and regional expertise: from building web scrapers that processed over 104,000 articles for discourse analysis, to developing predictive models for student performance analytics, to conducting field monitoring across shelter and protection programmes.

Balancing full-time employment with part-time studies has sharpened my discipline, time management, and resilience. Looking ahead, I am positioned to undertake projects at the intersection of data science and international affairs: predictive modelling for population displacement and refugee flows, machine learning-driven early warning systems for humanitarian crises, data-driven needs assessments for social support programmes, NLP-based media monitoring for conflict and security analysis, and geospatial analytics for aid distribution and resource allocation in fragile contexts.

Data Scientist and Researcher at Arab States Civil Society Organization and Feminist Network (2024-09 – 2025-01)

A coalition of over 70 organisations from 13 Arab countries working to advance women's rights and address gender-based discrimination across the Arab region.

• Built a web scraping pipeline from scratch (Python + Node.js) that collected over 104,000 article links, publication dates, and full-text content from 40 news domains across two months, producing the largest media dataset the network had compiled on women's issues coverage in the region.
• Conducted ML-driven discourse analysis that accurately measured how effectively mainstream and alternative media covered women's issues across West Asia and North Africa, revealing significant coverage gaps between outlet types.
• Drafted the final analytical report with findings and recommendations that informed the network's regional communications strategy across its 70+ member organisations.

Data Scientist at Insight Analytics (2023-02 – 2024-02)

A consultancy providing clients with data analytics, visualisation, and machine learning solutions to support data-driven decisions and business growth.

• Collected, cleaned, and analysed large-scale academic datasets using Python and SQL, developing predictive models that identified patterns in student performance, attrition, and retention, directly enabling the institution to target at-risk students for early intervention.
• Created data visualisations that communicated academic trends and skill insights to senior leadership, directly informing institutional strategy and resource allocation decisions.
• Developed a reusable predictive modelling pipeline that auto-generated updated visualisations with each new data intake cycle, reducing reporting turnaround and ensuring stakeholders always had access to current performance data.

MEAL Intern at INTERSOS (2022-08 – 2023-01)

An Italian humanitarian organisation on the front-line of emergencies, bringing assistance to victims of armed conflicts, natural disasters, and extreme exclusion, with particular attention to the protection of the most vulnerable.

• Conducted field monitoring visits and completed Post Distribution Monitoring (PDM) surveys for household shelter and common area programmes, contributing to the successful closure of monitoring cycles for the shelter and protection teams.
• Cleaned and organised datasets for the UNFPA dignity kits distribution project; generated graphs and visuals for the 2021 Winterisation PDM Report and the Long-Term Impact Assessment Report for UNHCR, both of which were submitted to donors as part of programme accountability deliverables.
• Developed monitoring documents, spreadsheets, and project databases that standardised data collection across multiple field activities; drafted monitoring reports submitted to donors.
• Updated the logical framework (logframe) and collected field data using KoboToolbox and Survey123, ensuring real-time data availability for programme decision-making.

Project Assistant at Arab Institute for Women, Lebanese American University (2019-06 – 2021-03)

Established in 1973, the first non-governmental institution focused on women's rights in the region and a bridge between academia and practice in the field.

• Contributed to the development of a women's rights resource platform, producing informational articles, expert Q&As, and multimedia content that served as a go-to regional resource for audiences across the Arab region.
• Compiled and organised research materials on women's legal rights in Lebanon and the wider Arab region; coordinated with legal experts to ensure accuracy of published information, resulting in a verified knowledge base on women's legal status across multiple jurisdictions.
• Provided input for animation scripts and awareness content raising visibility on key women's rights issues; managed user engagement on the platform, routing questions to appropriate subject-matter experts and ensuring timely responses.
• Supported the mapping of services and resources available for women across multiple locations in the region, creating a structured directory that connected beneficiaries with relevant legal and social support services.

Project Officer Intern at Karma (2018-10 – 2019-06)

A Lebanese NGO providing tertiary healthcare and cancer treatment to children from migrant and refugee families regardless of nationality, ethnicity, religion, or social class. It is the only such organisation in Lebanon.

• Coordinated fundraising events with communication and fundraising departments; liaised with restaurants, businesses, and the German International School to secure donations and partnerships, including organising the transport and screening of donated toys for children in treatment.
• Led onboarding and mentoring of a new cohort of communication and fundraising interns, ensuring continuity of operations after the previous group completed their term; conducted psychosocial support and recreational activities (face painting, drawing, resilience-building games) with children in cancer treatment departments.

Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs – American University of Science and Technology (2026)

Certificate in Data Science and Machine Learning: Making Data-Driven Decisions – MIT IDSS (Remote) (2022-02 – 2022-02)

Certificate in Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) for NGOs – NGOi / AUB (2021-06 – 2021-06)