ReStart: Supporting Women's Re-Entry into the Labour Force

Last registered on February 25, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
ReStart: Supporting Women's Re-Entry into the Labour Force
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0015416
Initial registration date
February 20, 2025

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
February 25, 2025, 10:27 AM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Gaurav Chiplunkar
Affiliation
University of Virginia
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Ashwini Deshpande
PI Affiliation
Ashoka University
PI Name
Kanika Mahajan
PI Affiliation
Ashoka University
PI Name
Niharika Singh
PI Affiliation
University of Notre Dame
PI Name
Nandhini S
PI Affiliation
Ashoka University

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2025-01-15
End date
2026-05-31
Keywords
Gender, Labor
Additional Keywords
Career Break, Skilling, Employment
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We propose to evaluate the impact of SkillReBoot, a skilling program by JobsForHer Foundation (JFH), designed to help women with career breaks re-enter the workforce. The online program has two key components: (i) a technical module to refresh skills in fields like Data Science and Frontend Development, and (ii) a job-readiness module covering CV building, negotiations, interviews, and presentation skills, complemented by networking and mentoring sessions with successful female entrepreneurs/executives.

Using a randomized controlled trial (RCT) with 1,500 participants, we will assess the effectiveness of these components by assigning women to one of three arms: (i) professional skills program, with only the job-readiness modules; (ii) professional and technical skills program with both the job-readiness as well as the technical skills modules; and (iii) a control group. Our primary outcomes of interest are employment status, job search behavior, earnings, job retention, and skill acquisition. Through periodic follow-up surveys we will track key mechanisms such as beliefs, confidence, self-perception, and household behavior to assess the broader impact of the program beyond employment outcomes.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Chiplunkar, Gaurav et al. 2025. "ReStart: Supporting Women's Re-Entry into the Labour Force." AEA RCT Registry. February 25. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.15416-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention 1: Professional Skills Program
Eligible candidates will be offered a job-readiness program. The job-readiness program would include modules on self-analysis, effective communication, job search practices, networking strategies, profile/resume building, interview preparation etc. Total duration of the training will be 4-6 weeks.

Intervention 2: Professional and Technical Skills Program
In addition to the job-readiness program, eligible candidates will also be offered a refresher course on technical skills training as well. Technical skills training is offered in two phases: Phase-1 begins with universal lessons on Design Thinking and Agile methodologies. In Phase-2, candidates based on their preferred industry of employment can choose a specialization from three modules- Data Science, RPA, Frontend Development. Total duration of the training will be 10-14 weeks.
Intervention Start Date
2025-03-01
Intervention End Date
2025-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Job-search behaviour (shortlists, job interviews, job offers); employment status and history; earnings; job retention
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Candidate’s skills, networks, beliefs, confidence levels, and self-perception
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Our primary participants of interest are women on a career break looking to re-enter the workforce. Therefore, we expect to restrict eligibility to women aged between 18 to 50 years with at least an undergraduate degree and who are not currently working full-time or studying. Furthermore, given the labour market, we expect them to have some coding experience or skills, and at most 7 years of career break. Lastly, given usual mobility constraints, we expect participants to reside in or close to selected major urban areas.

Eligible participants will then be randomly allocated with equal probability into either Intervention 1, Intervention 2, or a control group. The program will be implemented in at least two phases and we expect to stratify randomization by phase and by duration of career break, conditional on variation observed at baseline.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Computer
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1,500 eligible participants
Sample size: planned number of observations
1,500 eligible participants
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
500 participants in each group
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Ashoka University
IRB Approval Date
2024-05-29
IRB Approval Number
24-X-10011-Mahajan
Analysis Plan