PhD traineeship in Macroprudential Policy and Financial Stability

Macroprudential Policy & Financial Stability

11570

General Information
Type of contract PhD traineeship

Who can apply? EU nationals eligible for our traineeship programme

Grant The trainee grant is €2,120 per month plus an accommodation allowance (see further information section)

Working time Full time

Place of work Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Closing date 25.03.2025

Your team You will be part of the Policy Design Team in the Macroprudential Policy Division of the Directorate General Macroprudential Policy and Financial Stability. Our Directorate General has around 150 members of staff who analyse and provide policy advice on issues relating to financial stability, non-bank financial intermediation, financial regulation and macroprudential policy.

In your role as a PhD trainee, you will be part of a team responsible for conducting policy-relevant research into, and model-based analyses of, macroprudential policy design and financial stability. Working closely with financial stability experts in your team, you will contribute to the development and application of macro-financial agent-based models to answer topical policy questions. For example, this could involve assisting with modelling the effects of macroprudential policy on financial stability and the broader economy, or the interactions between capital requirements, borrower-based measures and monetary policy. In addition, you will have the opportunity to work with experts across the entire Division on a regular basis, as well as to interact with other experts in our Directorate General.

The PhD traineeship is aimed at students with a strong quantitative background and an interest in policy-relevant applied research.

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 in the Policy Design Team you will:

• further develop, design and calibrate agent-based models which incorporate multiple financial institutions to assess macroprudential policy effectiveness and interactions with other policies, such as monetary policy, also building on the modelling infrastructure already available in the division;
• contribute to the regular policy analysis of the Division using the results from the model development and implementation.

The position offers you excellent opportunities to work closely with our experts and support them in research projects and operational work, such as the preparation of policy-related analyses for the ECB’s Executive Board. This will enable you to develop your analytical abilities, enhance your quantitative skills and gain an insight into the ECB’s research activities and policymaking processes.

The PhD traineeship will also expose you to new ideas and stimuli that can provide valuable experience for your future career. In particular, you will have access to internal seminars and conferences organised by the ECB, as well as the ECB’s library and its computing, programming and statistical resources. The position provides a great opportunity to engage with topical policy and research questions, and to learn how analytical models can be applied to policymaking.

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 the field of economics, quantitative economics, finance or a related discipline;
• experience with the development, calibration and simulation of agent-based economic models in one or more of the fields relevant for this role (macro-financial analysis, macroprudential policy, financial markets, banking models, monetary policy and/or macroeconomics);
• significant experience with programming in MATLAB;
• a sound understanding of the economic issues relevant for the team;
• 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 understanding of, and experience with, other software programs used to develop agent-based modelling, such as Julia (e.g. Agents.jl), Python (e.g. Banca d’Italia’s Black-it), C++ or R;
• experience with the estimation and calibration of macroeconomic models.

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 Initial PhD traineeship of 6 months, with a possible extension to up to 12 months in total. The earliest starting date will be June 2025.

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.

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.