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The Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) and the Centre for Fertility and Health in Oslo are jointly offering one PhD student position in economic demography. The PhD candidate will spend most of their time in Rostock, Germany, but also regularly travel to Oslo. At the MPIDR, the position will be based in the Research Group Labor Demography.

Topic
The PhD candidate will study the social, demographic and health consequences of technology-induced job loss. This endeavor can help to better prepare for and identify contexts and policies that mitigate adverse social and health effects of technology-induced job loss. The project includes examining the consequences of technology-induced displacement, both on individual workers and the wider society, such as families and regions. Within this broad topic, the candidate will have the opportunity to develop their own research agenda and collaborate throughout and beyond the MPIDR.
Potential data sets to be used include Norwegian population registries which contain information on occupation, education, cognitive test performance, health, intergenerational relations as well as physiological and mental health trajectories. Additional, alternative data sources include register-based data from other countries, as well as large-scale survey data.
Successful candidates will be expected to have the following qualifications:
• background in economics, demography, medicine, statistics, epidemiology social sciences or other relevant fields,
• good oral and written presentation skills in English.
• Experience with data processing and statistics, as well as analysis of large data sets is an advantage.
• Competence in relevant statistics programs such as R or STATA is an advantage.
• Being results-oriented and having the ability to work independently.
• Being innovative, flexible, with great working capacity and teamwork skills.
MPIDR is one of the leading demographic centers in the world. It is part of the Max Planck Society, a network of 86 institutes that form Germany’s premier basic-research organization. Max Planck Institutes have an established record of world-class, foundational research in the sciences, technology, social sciences and the humanities. They offer a unique environment that combines the best aspects of an academic setting and a research laboratory.

The admitted student will be expected to take part in the International Max Planck Research School for Population, Health and Data Science (IMPRS-PHDS), a training initiative hosted at MPIDR that merges demography, epidemiology and data science. The IMPRS-PHDS school equips doctoral students not only with advanced knowledge of the theory and methods of demography and epidemiology (broadly defined as ‘population health’), but also with strong technical skills in statistics, mathematical modeling, and computational and data management methods (broadly referred to as ‘data science’). Possible dissertation topics are not limited to health, but cover all areas of demographic research, including mortality, fertility, migration, mathematical and social demography, as well as the impact of population aging on changing life courses, intergenerational transfers, and economic activity within populations. PHDS supports strong interdisciplinary research training and exchange within a network of universities in Europe and the US. The research school offers a core training program in Rostock, extensive networking opportunities across partner sites, and high-quality supervision across at least two institutes. More information on the IMPRS-PHDS curriculum is available on the school’s website at https://www.imprs-phds.mpg.de/.

Applications must be submitted online via https://www.demogr.mpg.de/go/JobAd997784 and include the following documents:

1 Curriculum Vitae
2 Letter of interest (Max 2 pages)
Please state why you are interested in joining MPIDR, how MPIDR could foster your professional development and career trajectory, and in which ways your research interests fit the research strengths of the Research Group on Labor Demography. Please also describe your technical skills, areas of expertise, as well as future research projects.
3 Copies of transcripts of undergraduate and, if applicable, master’s degrees
4 Names and contact information for 2 academic references
5 One writing sample


In order to receive full consideration, applications should be submitted by January 18, 2021. The starting date is flexible, but no later than Spring 2021. Successful applicants will be offered a 3-year contract at 50% FTE with remuneration based on the salary grade E13 (approx. 25,000 € annual gross income) of the German public sector (Öffentlicher Dienst, TVöD Bund).

The Max Planck Society offers a broad range of measures to support the reconciliation of work and family. These are complemented by the MPIDR’s own initiatives. For more information, see: https://www.demogr.mpg.de/go/work-family.

In addition, there are a range of central initiatives and measures primarily geared towards helping young female researchers and mothers to advance their career. See the link below for some examples: https://www.demogr.mpg.de/go/career-development.

The Max-Planck Society is committed to increasing the number of individuals with disabilities in its
workforce and therefore encourages applications from such qualified individuals. Our Institute and the Max Planck Society also seek to increase the proportion of women in areas where they are underrepresented and therefore explicitly encourage women to apply.

For inquiries about the position, please contact Peter Eibich at eibich@demogr.mpg.de or Vegard Skirbekk at Vegard.Skirbekk@fhi.no.

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Merry Christmas and a happy new year everyone!