Research Professional – Erik Hurst and Chang-Tai Hsieh (Full-Time, Benefits Eligible)
About The Position
The Becker Friedman Institute for Economics (BFI) is seeking a full-time Research Professional to work with Professors Chang-Tai Hsieh and Erik Hurst on ongoing and new research projects related to global innovation, China's economic growth, and technological revolution in the US service sector. The position is part of BFI's Predoctoral Research in Economics Program (PREP), intended as a bridge between college and graduate school for students interested in empirical economics. The successful candidate will work directly with the professors and contribute across all stages of research, including collecting tabular and spatial data, developing algorithms to clean and organize data, conducting statistical analyses, running simulations, and preparing manuscripts and presentations. Applicants must be available to begin in July 2027 and must have completed a bachelor's degree by June 2027. The ideal candidate would start July 1, 2027 and work at BFI for one or two years before applying to graduate school in Economics or another quantitative social science. The position offers an annual salary of $59,000–$62,000 and a $2,000 professional development fund, along with employee benefits.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution, completed by June 2027.
- Three months to one year of work experience in a related job discipline; experience gained through coursework may count as relevant experience.
- Experience in econometrics.
- Advanced coursework in Economics or Mathematics.
- Familiarity with analyzing large data sets and applying econometric methods.
- Knowledge of machine learning techniques in data analysis.
- Familiarity with statistical analysis packages such as Stata, R, or Python.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and meet tight deadlines.
- Ability to work independently and as a team member.
- Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
- Understanding of academia and higher education in a research and teaching environment.
- Availability to begin work in July 2027.
Nice To Haves
- Research experience is strongly preferred, especially experience with programming and numerical optimization software.
Responsibilities
- Clean and analyze data.
- Write or finalize replicable data files or scripts for publication.
- Ensure research activities comply with institutional, state, and federal regulatory policies, procedures, directives, and mandates; analyze possible solutions using standard procedures.
- Assist with writing data analysis plans and contribute to preparing study registration documents.
- Support the implementation of field experiments, including survey design and implementation and monitoring the quality of collected data, when needed.
- Support writing grant and policy reports and assist with drafting presentations of research findings.
- Transcribe and code data, develop data collection instruments, present research, and recruit and schedule research subjects, acquiring higher-level skills and knowledge in the process.
- Maintain technical and administrative support for a research project.
- Analyze and maintain data and/or specimens.
- Conduct literature reviews.
- Assist with preparing reports, manuscripts, and other documents.
- Perform other related work as needed.
Benefits
- Competitive salary of $59,000–$62,000 annually.
- $2,000 professional development fund.
- Employee benefits.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
