Post-Doctoral Fellowship, Economics of Crime
Description
This program offers two-year post-doctoral fellowships to early-career economists to promote research on the economics of crime and the criminal justice system. Fellows will conduct intensive research while visiting the NBER’s headquarters.
Research focus areas or topics:
- Economics of crime
- Criminal justice system
- Linkages between crime and labor, public finance, health, and other related fields
Fellows are expected to participate in NBER-sponsored research meetings, particularly the Economics of Crime Working Group meetings. Fellowship-related activities should represent the fellow’s primary responsibility.
Compensation
$110,000 stipend for the 2026–27 academic year for the consecutive year, reimbursement for health insurance, office space, and IT support at the NBER’s Cambridge headquarters, and a research fund for conference travel and research expenses.
Eligibility
- Just completing PhDs (must have PhD by June 2026) or junior faculty members who can combine this fellowship with an early career leave.
- Fellows must be able to spend two consecutive years visiting the NBER’s headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Application Deadline
5:00pm EST on Thursday, December 4, 2025. Will be notified in January 2026 for the 2026–27 academic year.
Application Requirements
- Curriculum vitae
- Research Proposal, please address the following:
Cover page: Your name, organization/university affiliation, contact information, and title of proposed project (cover page does not count against the page limit).
Research Questions: Describe the key research question(s) and how answering this research question can contribute to an identified crime or justice system policy issue or problem. Where relevant, discuss how the research project has the potential to inform policy/practice at the federal or state level.
Project Description: Describe the proposed research plan, the primary (and secondary) outcomes of interest, how information on the relevant policy and outcomes will be collected and measured, and the study timeline. Explain, where necessary, the plan for data access and the nature of any experiments that will be conducted.
- A sample research paper related to the proposal topic (optional).
- One recommendation letter (preferably from a dissertation supervisor).
Selection Committee
Jens Ludwig of the University of Chicago and Crystal Yang of Harvard Law School.
Funder
Arnold Ventures
Contact
Abbie Murrell murrella@nber.org