General Information

Type of contract:  PhD traineeship

Who can apply?:  EU nationals eligible for our traineeship programme 

Grant:  The trainee grant is €1,940 per month plus an accommodation allowance (see further information section)

Working time:  Full time

Place of work:  Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Closing date:  05.01.2024

Your team

You will be part of Directorate General International and European relations. Our Directorate General has 120 staff members and prepares the policy positions of the ECB, the Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks on international and European issues (except the macroeconomic policies of the euro area or EU Member States). We are currently working on issues related to the global economic outlook, the global transmission of monetary policy, the international implications of introducing a digital euro and various topical issues at the forefront of the international and European economic debate.

In your role as a PhD trainee, you will be part of a team in the International Policy Analysis Division. The Division prepares policy positions, analyses and briefings on issues of systemic relevance for the global economy and for the international monetary and financial system. Relevant areas of interest include global financial markets, commodities, exchange rates, the international role of currencies, international spillovers and financial globalisation.

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 PhD trainee you will work closely with ECB staff members on some of the following tasks: 

• carrying out a research project;
• presenting the results of your research in an internal seminar;
• drafting a paper for publication in the ECB’s Working Paper Series or academic journals;
• contributing to the analytical work of the Division.

The position offers you excellent opportunities to work alongside highly qualified experts in the fields of international macroeconomics and international finance under the guidance of a mentor. 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 economics, finance, statistics, data science or a closely related field;
• a sound understanding of international macroeconomics, monetary economics and finance;
• familiarity with some programming, statistical and econometric software packages such as MATLAB, Dynare, Python, R, Stata, EViews 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: 

• a sound knowledge of econometric techniques such as vector autoregressions, non-linear vector autoregressions or panel econometrics;
• experience using macro-modelling tools, macro-financial applications and/or non-linear solution methods.

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 between 3 and 12 months in total.

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

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.

You are also requested to submit a short project proposal (maximum two pages) on any relevant area of international economics or finance, specifying the proposed empirical or macro-modelling methodology. Examples of topics include:

• commodity and asset prices;
• exchange rates and international capital flows;
• international issues related to the digitalisation of money;
• equilibrium exchange rates;
• the economic impact of heightened geopolitical tensions; 
• global determinants of the natural rate of interest;
• the international macroeconomic impact of climate change and climate transition;
• the transmission of monetary policy in advanced economies (excluding the euro area) to asset prices (e.g. conventional versus non-conventional monetary policy, state-dependency);
• cross-country monetary policy spillovers.

Please note that your proposal may partly build on your own past research or studies.

As an essential part of the selection procedure, your proposal should be for a project that is both interesting and well-defined methodologically. Please upload your proposal (with your name in the file name) as a PDF file together with your application.

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.