NBER Entrepreneurship Research Boot Camp 2025
The NBER is pleased to announce that it will host the 18th annual Entrepreneurship Research Boot Camp in Cambridge, Massachusetts in July 2025. This intensive workshop provides an introduction into the leading research topics in the economics of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial finance and is intended to promote research in these areas. It is particularly well suited for PhD students in economics, finance, or strategy who are exploring research ideas in these areas.
When and Where: The boot camp will convene in Cambridge, MA, on Monday, July 14, 2025, and conclude on Friday, July 18, 2025.
Program: The program will begin with the Entrepreneurship Working Group Summer Institute meeting on Monday, July 14, and continue from Tuesday to Friday with two 3-hour lectures each day. These lectures will be presented by active researchers specializing in various topics of interest. In recent years, speakers have included Shai Bernstein (Stanford GSB), Nick Bloom (Stanford), John Haltiwanger (Maryland), Jorge Guzman (Columbia), Yael Hochberg (Rice), Bill Kerr (Harvard Business School), Josh Lerner (Harvard Business School), Petra Moser (NYU Stern), David Robinson (Duke Fuqua), Rafaella Sadun (Harvard Business School), Antoinette Schoar (MIT Sloan) and Scott Stern (MIT Sloan). There will also be a keynote lecture at a joint gala dinner with the Innovation Policy Boot Camp.
Participation: The boot camp will include around 25 participants and is restricted to those currently enrolled in PhD programs. To be eligible to attend, participants must have completed at least one year of PhD coursework in economics or a closely related field. Participants are expected to carefully prepare for the workshop by reading a syllabus of over 50 papers. Travel, four nights of lodging, and meal expenses will be covered by the NBER. Participation is restricted to admitted applicants.
Application: Applications will be reviewed by a panel consisting of Nick Bloom, Jorge Guzman, Yael Hochberg, Josh Lerner, David Robinson, Antoinette Schoar, and Scott Stern. Applications from scholars from all backgrounds and institutions who are interested in entrepreneurship research are welcome.
Applicants should assemble the following materials in a single PDF file:
1) A one-page summary document clearly indicating the applicant’s name, complete contact information, school, area of interest, year of entry into the PhD program, expected year of completion, and the name of a faculty member supplying a letter of recommendation.
2) A curriculum vitae.
3) A brief, one-page essay describing the applicant’s current and future research as well as the reason for wanting to attend the boot camp.
Upload application packet by midnight EST on Saturday, February 15, 2025.
Applicants should use their name when completing the “Title of application” field. Please also tell us in the "Optional comments or information for the conference organizers" field on the second page where you heard about the boot camp.
In addition, a confidential letter of recommendation (no more than two pages) from a current or former PhD advisor, or another scholar familiar with the applicant’s work, should be sent via email, by the same deadline, to Brett Maranjian at the NBER (maranjian@nber.org). Acceptance decisions will be announced by mid-March. Applications that are not complete by the deadline will not be considered.
Questions about logistics of the boot camp may be addressed to Brett Maranjian (maranjian@nber.org). Questions about the content of the boot camp may be addressed to the academic coordinators, Jorge Guzman (jorge.guzman@columbia.edu) and David Robinson (david.robinson@duke.edu).