Job Title: Research Professional – Joshua Gottlieb, Matt Notowidigdo, Zarek Brot-Goldberg, and Maggie Shi (Full-Time, Benefits Eligible) (Full-Time, Benefits Eligible)

Location: Chicago, IL – Hyde Park Campus, Saieh Hall

Expected Start Date: July 1, 2024

Please send questions about this position to bfipredoc@uchicago.edu.

Job Summary:

The Becker Friedman Institute for Economics (BFI) is seeking to hire a full-time Research Professional to work with Professor Joshua Gottlieb, Harris School of Public Policy, Co-Director of BFI’s Health Economics Initiative, and Professor Matt Notowidigdo, David McDaniel Keller Professor of Economics and Business and Public Policy Fellow, Professor Zarek Brot-Goldberg, Assistant Professor at the Harris School of Public Policy, and Professor Maggie Shi, Assistant Professor at the Harris School of Public Policy,, and their students and coauthors. The Research Professional will be involved in all stages of ongoing and new research projects related to health and urban economics. Their current research can be viewed at the BFI website. Previous RPs working for the Health INitiative have gone on to PhD programs at Stanford, Yale, the University of Chicago, and Northwestern, and become co-authors on projects commenced during their tenure as RPs.

Successful candidates will work directly with Professors Gottlieb, Notowidigdo, Brot-Goldberg, and Shi, and co-authors as part of BFI's Predoctoral Research in Economics Program (PREP). The program is intended to serve as a bridge between college and graduate school for students interested in empirical economics. Applicants must have completed a Bachelor’s degree by June 2024 and have strong quantitative and programming skills. Candidates with research experience are strongly preferred, especially those with experience in Stata, R, and/or Python. The ideal candidate would begin on July 1, 2024 (flexible) and work for BFI for two years before applying to graduate school in Economics or another quantitative social science. BFI offers competitive salary and employee benefits.

Applications will be reviewed in the order in which they are received.

Unit-specific Responsibilities:

Write programs in Stata, R, and/or Python to analyze large datasets
Code economic models in Julia
Construct maps, figures, and tables for economics papers
Identify new data sources
Editing tasks
Other duties as assigned.

Unit-preferred Competencies:

Desired (but not required) skills include advanced familiarity with numerical optimization and package development in Stata, R, Python, and/or Julia, and the ability to use Stata to manage and analyze large datasets. Although previous experience with any specific language is not essential, familiarity with at least one scripting language is encouraged.
Ability to work independently and manage multiple projects simultaneously
Excellent organizational skills
Attention to detail
Strong academic writing/communication skills

Preferred Qualifications:

Education

Bachelor's degree in economics, computer science, physics, engineering, or other quantitative STEM fields is highly desirable.

Experience

Relevant research experience as a research assistant.

Technical Knowledge/Skills

Knowledge of R, Python, Stata preferred

Required Documents:

Resume/CV
Writing sample
Transcripts (unofficial is ok)

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