PhD in Methods and Models for Economic Decisions

The PhD program lasts three years and all its activities are in English. Each post is endowed with a scholarship of about € 16,243 gross per year. Each student is endowed with an additional budget of about € 1,624 per year for research activities.The PhD program is hosted by Department of Economics of the University of Insubria (located in Varese, Italy), which has been granted the Departments of Excellence award and funding plan for the period 2023 – 2027 by the ANVUR (Italian National Agency for the Evaluation of Universities and Research Institutes), ranking 8th among the Italian departments of economics and statistics.

 Topic and goals

 A significant part of economic analysis focuses on decision-making processes. Consumers and producers, workers and firms, banks and managers, households and policy makers continuously make decisions which are economically relevant. Economists are interested in understanding, predicting or modifying the processes underlying these decisions. The analysis of human decisions relies on methods and models that differ significantly across various fields of economic research. For instance, classical decision theory is largely based on mathematical models, while more recent research in behavioral decision theory often relies on experimental methods. Econometric tools are used to investigate the determinants of specific decisions, such as those concerning labor, transports, health or charity. Computational methods are used to simulate how economic agents interact, and to investigate the economic effects of their interactions. The PhD program in Methods and Models for Economic Decisions trains young researchers to master the variety of theoretical and applied approaches that are used in economics for analyzing decision-making processes. 

Faculty

 The PhD Board includes faculty members of Insubria University as well as faculty members of other Italian and foreign universities. See the PhD webpage for the complete faculty list. 

Organization 

In the first year of the program, students attend compulsory courses to acquire a broad set of research skills(from theory to data analysis), that allow them to tackle the complex phenomena related to decision making. During the second and third year of the program, students focus on their own research under the supervision of one or more faculty members and participate in seminars and reading groups in their field of interest. See the training activities webpage for the complete list of courses. The program strongly encourages students to spend part of their PhD period abroad and supports them in gaining international experience. The central goal of the program is to create independent researchers, who can then pursue an academic career in leading universities or obtain research positions in private firms or international organizations. At the end of the third-year students submit their PhD dissertation, which is usually made of three research papers. The PhD courses in the next academic year will start in November 2024. 

Admission requirements 

The selection procedure is open to candidates who hold a Master’s Degree (Laurea Magistrale) or a 4-year Degree previous to the Ministerial Decree no. 509/1999 (Laurea quadriennale vecchio ordinamento), or equivalent academic title (Master’s Degree) obtained abroad, without age or citizenship restrictions. Graduands may conditionally access the selection procedure, provided that they obtain the required admission qualification by 31 October 2024, under penalty of exclusion in case of positive outcome of the selection procedure. Full details

 for applying to the academic year 2024-25 (Cycle 40) with enrollment procedures can be found here in Italian and in English. 

Here are the links to the full call for applications:

 6 “ordinary” scholarships: in Italian and in English

 2 “additional” scholarship (DM 630 - PNRR): in Italian and in English

 Deadline for applications: July 11, 2024

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