NBER’s Fellowship Program in Retirement and Disability Policy Research, supported by the Social Security Administration (SSA) and NBER through the Retirement and Disability Research Center, enables outstanding early-career economists to visit NBER’s Cambridge office for a year of intensive research aimed at the health, labor, behavioral, and other economic or policy aspects of retirement and disability. Applications from researchers just completing their PhDs, and from junior faculty members who may combine this fellowship with an early-career leave, are welcome. Fellows will be selected based on reviewers’ assessment of the strength of their proposed research and potential to make an important policy-relevant contribution to our understanding of retirement and/or disability.
Applications are being accepted for the 2025-2026 academic year. The fellowship offers a 12-month stipend of $95,000 plus reimbursement for health insurance, limited research expenses, and an office at the NBER’s Cambridge headquarters. The fellowship stipend provides federal funding for 100% effort during the year, and fellows are expected to spend the academic year at the NBER. A working paper on the funded topic is due by September 2025.
Applicants must have completed their PhD before they begin the program. NBER strongly encourages applications from women, members of groups that have been under-represented in the economics profession, individuals with disabilities, and veterans. SSA’s research priorities can be found here. NBER may be able to sponsor the fellowship recipient for a J-1 visa under its research scholars program.
To apply, please submit a curriculum vitae, three recommendation letters, job market paper, and a research proposal of up to 3 pages of text, 2 pages of tables/graphs, and 1 page of references describing the proposed research for the fellowship year on a topic relevant to retirement or disability policy. Please visit Job Openings for Economists to upload application materials for this position.
Deadline: December 5, 2024, at 11:59 pm EST.