TITLE: Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) Technical Advisor
TEAM/PROGRAMME: Programme Development and Quality
LOCATION: Damascus
GRADE: Grade 3
CONTRACT LENGTH:12 months
CHILD SAFEGUARDING:
Level 3: the role holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work in country programs; or are visiting country programs; or because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.
ROLE PURPOSE:
The MHPSS Technical Advisor provides overall technical leadership for Mental Health and Psychosocial Support programming across the Syria Country Office (SCO), ensuring that MHPSS programmes are high quality, evidence-informed, -systematically integrated across sectors and aligned with Save the Children and international standards.
A key part of the role is to lead and quality-assure MHPSS inputs into programme design, concept notes and proposals, ensuring that technical approaches, activities, indicators and budgets are coherent, realistic and responsive to identified needs.
The Advisor also supports the integration of MHPSS across existing thematic programmes, particularly Child Protection, Education, Health, Nutrition and other relevant sectors, so that MHPSS is embedded within programme design and implementation rather than delivered only as a stand-alone intervention.
The role further leads technical quality assurance, harmonisation of MHPSS approaches and tools, capacity strengthening of staff and partners, technical guidance to field teams, and contributes to assessments, learning, reporting and programme development. The Advisor represents Save the Children in relevant MHPSS coordination mechanisms, technical forums and strategic partnerships and supports identification of opportunities for future programme development and funding.
SCOPE OF ROLE:
The main purpose of this role is to provide strong technical leadership in the SCI Syria response Office on Mental health & Psychosocial Support. The aim is to enhance the breadth and quality of MHPSS work delivered by SCI and its Partners, bringing immediate and lasting changes in the lives of children.
Focus of the role will be on technical capacity building, programme quality assurance on MHPSS intervention and ensuring MHPSS is properly integrated across the sectors in a technically sound fashion.
Reports to: Director Programme Development and Quality
Dimensions:
Staff directly reporting to this post: No direct reports. Coordination with other Tas CP TA, Edu TA, Ops staff in AOs, Global MHPSS TAs
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:
Essential
•Master’s degree in psychology, mental health, or relevant field, with at least 5 years of progressively responsible professional experience in MHPSS; or
•Significant professional experience providing technical leadership for MHPSS programming in humanitarian, protracted-crisis or fragile settings, preferably including the Syria or wider Middle East context.
•Strong technical knowledge of community-based MHPSS, child and adolescent MHPSS, scalable psychological and psychosocial interventions, and relevant global standards, including the IASC MHPSS Guidelines and MHPSS Minimum Service Package.
•Demonstrated experience in programme quality assurance, including development/adaptation of technical guidance and tools, monitoring implementation quality, technical supervision and strengthening staff and partner competency.
•Strong experience in programme design and proposal development, including translating assessed MHPSS needs into technically sound approaches, activities, indicators, budgets and donor proposals.
•Demonstrated ability to integrate MHPSS across sectors, particularly Child Protection, Education, Health and Nutrition, while maintaining appropriate technical standards, roles and referral pathways.
•Proven experience in capacity strengthening of national and local partners, including capacity assessment, training, coaching, technical supervision and longer-term organisational strengthening.
•Experience working with MEAL teams on MHPSS assessments, indicators, monitoring frameworks, learning and evidence generation, and using findings to improve programme quality.
•Strong coordination, communication and influencing skills, with the ability to work effectively with field teams, technical colleagues, partners, UN agencies, donors and relevant authorities across complex and sensitive operating environments.
•Strong analytical and writing skills, including the ability to produce high-quality technical guidance, assessments, proposals, reports and strategic recommendations.
•Fluency in Arabic and English, written and spoken.
• Job Identification:17950
• Apply Before:30/10/2026, 02:29 AM
• Job Schedule:Full time
• Location - Syria Response Office
Detailed job description and Applying Link: https://hcri.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1/job/17950