NBER Call for Applicants: Health Economics Research Boot Camp for Graduate Students

Health Economics Research Boot Camp for Graduate Students
December 3-5, 2019 — Cambridge, MA
Call for ApplicantsThe National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) will host a research-focused workshop on topics in health economics on December 3-5, 2019, in Cambridge, MA. This intensive workshop is designed for economics Ph.D. students who have completed their coursework and are beginning or conducting research in health economics. Please share the following call for applicants with anyone who may be interested in attending.

The program provides an introduction into selected research topics that intersect with industrial organization, public economics, and behavioral economics. The workshop is sponsored by the National Science Foundation and will be organized by Professor Ben Handel of the University of California – Berkeley and NBER. It will begin at noon on Tuesday, December 3, and it will conclude at 1:00pm on Thursday, December 5. The workshop will be held in the NBER’s Cambridge office.

The program will consist of fifteen hours of research presentations by experienced and active researchers. Speakers last year included Leemore Dafny (Harvard), Amy Finkelstein (MIT), Jonathan Gruber (MIT), Ben Handel (Berkeley), Katherine Ho (Princeton), Jonathan Kolstad (Berkeley), Emily Oster (Brown), Joshua Schwartzstein (Harvard), and John Van Reenen (MIT). We are still determining the set of speakers for this year.

The boot camp is designed to promote research interest in health economics. It is particularly well suited for Ph.D. students in economics who are either considering, or already doing, research in this area. Applicants must have successfully completed the first year of their Ph.D. program. Those in the second, third, and fourth years of their respective programs will be given priority for participation, although advanced Ph.D. students who are well along on dissertation research may also apply. Participants are expected to carefully prepare for the workshop by reading a set of approximately twenty background papers.

Twenty students will be included in the workshop; NSF will cover travel and lodging for them subject to NBER reimbursement guidelines and caps. Participants will be accommodated for up to three nights if traveling from a distance that requires it.

Applicants should use this link to submit, no later than October 10, 2019, the following application materials in a single pdf file:

o A cover letter that includes complete contact information, as well as the name of the recommendation letter writer.

o A curriculum vitae that includes a list of all current and completed Ph.D. courses.

o A two-page essay explaining the rationale for attending the boot camp. This should include a brief description of the applicant’s current and future research direction.

In addition, a letter of recommendation from the applicant’s PhD advisor, no more than two pages in length, should be sent separately to Ms. Brett Maranjian (maranjian@nber.org) by the same deadline.

Applications from students who are members of under-represented groups are welcome. Applications will be evaluated by three reviewers: Ben Handel (Berkeley), Katherine Ho (Princeton), and Jonathan Kolstad (Berkeley). Acceptance decisions will be announced by early October.

Questions about the scientific program for the workshop may be directed to Professor Ben Handel (handel@berkeley.edu). Questions about logistics and the application process may be directed to Ms. Maranjian (maranjian@nber.org).