Our Impact – Access Singapore

Our Research & Impact Team

The Research & Impact (RI) team at Access is responsible for evaluating the effectiveness of our programmes and ensuring that the organisation’s objectives are clearly defined and grounded.

The RI team has three branches; each branch contributes to the overall assessment of our programmes and Access as a whole, especially its ability to achieve its’ goal of being the early touchpoint for disadvantaged youths to develop a career plan for specific phases in their life through experiential learning.

The Three Branches of Research & Impact

Pre-programme

Focuses on reviewing the programmes designed by the Programmes Team to ensure that the objectives of the programmes translate to activities and attainable outcomes.

The team uses Theory of Change (TOC) and Logic Modelling (LM) to identify overlooked gaps and assumptions made during the construction of each programme. It then works closely with the Programmes Team to suggest possible alternatives or restructuring to ensure that the programme’s intentions are achievable. The Pre-Programme Branch also makes sure that each programme's objectives are clearly defined and communicated throughout the organization, while also keeping them grounded and attainable.

Post-programme

Manages the ongoing impact of Access’ programmes.

The team uses data to evaluate the effectiveness of each programme and references multiple existing frameworks and scales to ensure validity in its impact analysis. Some of these frameworks include:

‍Achieve Connect Thrive (ACT!SG): A localised framework to measure Singaporean youths-at-risk’s development in attaining success in school and life.
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‍Career Maturity Inventory (CMI): A measurement used to assess a student’s career choice readiness.
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‍Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale: A scale used to assess one’s self-worth by measuring both positive and negative feelings about the self.
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‍Eudaimonic Well-Being Scale: A scale used to measure one’s self-discovery and sense of purpose and meaning in life.Moreover, the Post-Programme Branch also collects qualitative data through interviews, focus group discussions, and open-ended questionnaires.

General Research

Mainly supports the Pre- and Post-Programme Branches with research to support their claims and decisions.

It involves literature reviews of our specific demographic, existing interventions, and validated impact assessment measures. The team also supports other divisions of Access when needed.