Your team You will be part of the Supply Side, Labour and Surveillance Division in the Directorate General Economics. Our staff provides analysis of the euro area labour market, long-term drivers of economic growth (including productivity), and cross-country analysis of macroeconomic vulnerabilities. We also look at economic issues relating to EU governance, with a focus on the Next Generation EU programme and the deepening of Economic and Monetary Union. Our most recent work has focused on the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic crisis on the labour market and its possible scarring effects, the role of structural changes in the euro area economy (such as digitalisation, demographics and climate change), and the impact of government policies to support the economy, including potential side effects. Our analytical agenda includes the analysis of labour market heterogeneity and its impact for monetary policy, the use of high-frequency labour market data, and the analysis of firm and sectoral heterogeneity in terms of productivity and digitalisation – all with a view to drawing policy conclusions that are relevant to the macro economy.

In your role as a PhD trainee, you will contribute to empirical work in the realms of labour markets, firm productivity, climate change, long-term drivers of economic growth, and macroeconomic risks and vulnerabilities in the euro area.

The ECB is an inclusive employer and we strive to reflect the diversity of the population we serve. We encourage you to apply irrespective of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation or other characteristics.

Your role As a trainee you will:

- support the Division’s analytical agenda for key policy questions; - conduct empirical analyses using state-of-the-art economic and econometric models; - contribute to the enhancement of analytical, econometric and forecasting tools under the supervision of ECB Experts; - have the opportunity to submit the resulting papers for publication in the ECB’s Working Paper Series and in academic journals.

We are looking for several PhD trainees, with at least one of following project-specific profiles:

> A. applied microeconometrics for the labour market, corporate finance and firm dynamics;

> B. applied time series and panel data analysis for empirical macro;

> C. dynamic stochastic general equilibrium modelling (including heterogenous-agents models);

> D. growth theory;

> E. machine learning techniques.

More specifically, our analytical projects will cover the green transition, how retirement patterns can affect potential output, the competitiveness of euro area firms and the role of institutional factors, the long-term trends in hours worked, how monetary policy tightening can drive firms’ employment decisions, and the trend-cycle composition for the labour market.

Trainees will be expected to complete their tasks using their own initiative and to work largely autonomously under the supervision of an ECB Expert. Successful candidates will have access to the ECB’s library, as well as to computing and statistical resources. They will also have access to most conferences organised by the ECB and to internal seminars.

The position offers you excellent opportunities to work with state-of-the-art modelling and econometric techniques, as well as to contribute to policy work that is vital for the Division’s analytical contributions. You will be part of a multicultural team that strives for continuous innovation to make a positive impact on the lives of European citizens.

Qualifications, experience and skills Essential:

- a master’s degree and at least two years of PhD studies in the field of economics, finance, statistics or data science or a related field; - a sound understanding of the economic and institutional context in which the ECB fulfils its mandate; - excellent knowledge of, and a track record in, state-of-the-art modelling tools and econometric techniques or data analytics; - programming skills in one or more of the following software packages: MATLAB, Stata, Python, R and Julia; - a good knowledge of the MS Office package; - an advanced (C1) command of English and an intermediate (B1) command of at least one other official language of the EU, according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Desired:

- experience in handling microdata and microeconometric models and methods; - experience in working with macroeconometric methods and models;

You are curious and eager to learn, and want to further develop your ability to analyse complex information. You are keen to collaborate with others, pursue team goals and learn from other people’s diverse perspectives. You strive to know and anticipate stakeholder needs, and will signal any need for change and propose alternative solutions.

You are motivated to contribute to the ECB’s mission, to serve the citizens of the EU as a member of a public institution and to work with colleagues from all over Europe. You are keen to be part of our team and to use your skills and competencies to achieve the aims of this position.

Further information PhD traineeship of three months, with a possible extension to up to 12 months in total.

Other details on the conditions applicable to traineeships at the ECB can be found on our website.

For additional information on this specific vacancy, you can speak to Agostino Consolo, on +49 (0)69 1344 5224 between 12:00 and 13:00 Tuesday, 27 February.

Application and selection process The recruitment process for this position will include an online interview.

Further information on how to apply is available on our website.

If you are not selected for this position but are still considered suitable, you will be placed on a reserve list for 12 months from the closing date for applications, from which you might be considered for other traineeship positions within the ECB.

Apply now

Added 5 months ago - Updated 4 months ago - Source: ecb.europa.eu