PhD Positions in Applied Macroeconomics and Political Economy

The Chair of Applied Macroeconomics is associated with the KOF Swiss Economic Institute at ETH Zurich and is part of the Department of Management, Technology and Economics (D-MTEC). We invite applications for one or more PhD positions in Applied Macroeconomics and Political Economy. The positions are based at KOF and affiliated with the Chair of Applied Macroeconomics.

Research at the Chair focuses on the empirical analysis of macroeconomic and policy-relevant questions. We work with macroeconomic, microeconomic, firm-level, household, geospatial and international datasets and apply modern econometric methods, including panel-data, time-series and causal-inference approaches.

Potential dissertation projects may explore:

• how globalization and international policy competition shape fiscal and macroeconomic outcomes
• how multinational firms respond to corporate tax incentives and regulation
• how political institutions, information, economic freedom and electoral incentives influence economic policy
• how firm- and household-level data can contribute to our understanding of business cycles, forecasting, monetary policy, migration and corruption
• other policy-relevant questions in applied macroeconomics and political economy

The dissertation topic will be developed jointly with the supervisory team. We aim to identify a project that connects with the doctoral researcher's interests, experience and areas in which they would like to develop further expertise.

As a doctoral researcher, you will develop a dissertation in applied macroeconomics, public finance and/or political economy. With support and guidance from the supervisory team, you will progressively take ownership of your research projects and use econometric methods and relevant macroeconomic and/or microeconomic data to address questions of academic and policy relevance.

Your activities will include:

• developing research questions and research designs and contributing to original academic papers
• collecting, documenting and analysing datasets, which may include firm-level, country-level, geospatial, administrative, survey or text data
• discussing and presenting your research at internal seminars, academic workshops and international conferences
• taking part in the research activities of the Chair and KOF, including regular research meetings and seminars
• completing coursework within the D-MTEC doctoral programme
• depending on your interests and the needs of the Chair, contributing to teaching activities in a limited capacity

The PhD will be supervised by Prof. Dr. Jan-Egbert Sturm and, depending on the research topic, Dr. Enea Baselgia. The position is intended to lead to a doctoral degree from ETH Zurich.

We welcome applications from candidates with different academic and personal backgrounds. We encourage you to apply even if your experience does not cover every preferred area listed below.

You bring:

• a Master's degree in Economics or a closely related field, completed by the time the position begins
• an interest in empirical research addressing relevant economic and public-policy questions
• an interest in applied macroeconomics, international economics, public finance and/or political economy
• a sound foundation in econometrics, statistics and quantitative analysis
• experience with at least one statistical programming language, such as Stata, R or Python, and an openness to learning additional tools
• the ability to communicate your ideas clearly in written and spoken English
• an interest in contributing to a collaborative research environment while developing your ability to plan and conduct your own research

Applicants with a quantitative background in statistics, data science, political science, public policy or finance are also welcome, provided that they have sufficient training in economics.

Depending on the position and proposed research area, the following experience or interests would be useful:

• panel-data methods, causal inference, time-series econometrics or the analysis of large microeconomic datasets
• international taxation, tax competition, tax havens, fiscal federalism or the political economy of tax policy
• an interest in developing a research-oriented career within or outside academia
• knowledge of German is welcome but not required

We value a research culture in which people share ideas, learn from one another and treat each other with respect. We are committed to increasing diversity in economics and to supporting the careers of women and people from groups that remain underrepresented in the discipline. We particularly encourage members of these groups to apply.

We offer the opportunity to pursue a PhD at ETH Zurich and the KOF Swiss Economic Institute in an engaging and collaborative research environment. KOF is Switzerland's leading academic institute for applied economic research and provides independent data, analysis and assessments for politics, business and society.

As a doctoral researcher at KOF, you will become part of a broad…