Associate Professional Specialist for Princeton Program In Public Finance in Princeton, New Jersey at Princeton University

The Princeton Program in Public Finance (PPPF) in the Department of Economics seeks a highly motivated and experienced Associate Professional Specialist. PPPF research interests include wealth inequality, entrepreneurship, gender equality, regional economic development, political economy, and the analysis of tax subsidies on the housing market and social insurance policies.

The successful candidate will provide advanced research support to Henrik Kleven on specific applied economics research projects during the 2027-2028 academic year. The Associate Professional Specialist (APS) works under general faculty guidance and must interpret complex ideas, concepts, and methodologies and apply them effectively to new projects and scenarios. Professor Kleven's research focuses on questions in public economics, labor economics, and gender economics. He combines theory and data—often large administrative datasets—to study the effects and optimal design of government policies. He also works on gender inequality in the labor market, and especially the impact and drivers of child penalties. While this position will report to Professor Kleven, the successful candidate will also have the opportunity to interact closely with other faculty in the section, including Ilyana Kuziemko, Owen Zidar, and Evan Soltas.

The work for Professor Kleven involves econometric analyses, calibration methods, and theoretical modeling in public finance. On empirical projects, the APS is expected to develop empirical models and to independently implement quasi-experimental analyses (such as regression discontinuity, bunching, and event study designs). Succeeding in these tasks requires a good command of graduate-level econometrics, including econometric modeling, identification, and inference.

On theoretical projects, the APS is expected to develop theoretical models (such as general equilibrium models of taxation), to derive analytical results within these models, and to calibrate and implement numerical simulations of the models. Succeeding in these tasks requires graduate-level economic theory (including general equilibrium theory, perturbation methods, and fixed-point equations) and numerical methods (including root finding, solving large systems of nonlinear equations, and approximating integrals).

In both types of projects, the APS is expected to proactively verify the assumptions underlying the empirical and theoretical approaches and to propose alternative approaches where appropriate.

Other responsibilities may include:

• Designing online survey instruments, managing survey recruitment, and processing survey data.
• Training, optimizing, and testing advanced AI models on various forms of raw data.
• Managing and supervising quality control of project work completed by third-party contractors, including software engineers.
• Coordinating and submitting applications for review by Princeton’s Institutional Review Board.

The work location for this position is in-person on campus at Princeton University. This position is subject to the University's background check policy. These are one-year term positions with the potential for renewal for a second term. The expected start date is on or around June 15, 2027.

The Associate Professional Specialist is an important part of the PPPF program. In addition to working closely with faculty, the APS has opportunities to participate in the vibrant academic life of Princeton University through attending seminars and interacting with students and faculty in the Department of Economics.

These positions are not eligible for sponsorship of an H-1B visa requiring consular processing; other visa sponsorships (including H-1B visas not requiring consular processing) may be available, as appropriate.

• Master's degree in Economics, Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, Statistics, or a related discipline
• Prior research experience with econometric modeling, identification, and inference
• Prior research experience with general equilibrium theory, perturbation methods, fixed-point equations, and numerical methods
• Experience working with real-world data sets
• Strong coding/algorithm skills and proficiency in statistical programming, especially Stata, R, Python, MATLAB, SAS, LaTeX
• Ability to work independently
• Strong written and oral communication skills
• Excellent organizational and time management skills

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and as such, we encourage applicants to apply early. Short-listed applicants will be contacted for an interview and technical assessment. Candidates should upload the following:

1. Cover letter and resume
2. List of three references
3. Transcripts from all previous academic programs
4. A research paper in economics or finance (e.g., master's course paper, independent research, etc.)
5. Sample of code (ideally for the same paper)

Address all queries to: pppecon@princeton.edu.