Graduate Fellowships on Fiscal and Economic Effects of Innovation and Productivity Policies

In an effort to expand research on the fiscal and economic effects of innovation and productivity policies, as well as the number of researchers working on this topic, the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) with the support of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation plans to offer up to six dissertation fellowships for the 2025-2026 academic year. As many as six additional early-career researchers – researchers who received their Ph.Ds. in 2014 or later -- may be selected for unfunded fellowships.  All of the fellows will be invited to participate in a research conference at the end of the academic year. 

Fellows may study any aspect of innovation and productivity policies, but particular attention is focused on three areas – R&D, immigration, and infrastructure permitting – that were specifically highlighted by the staff of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) in a recent paper as areas where more research would be particularly helpful in informing Congressional debates.  Applicants seeking additional information on the three priority topic areas might consult these resources: 

• R&D: This recent analysis of the economic and budgetary effects of research spending, and a blog post by CBO staff “Estimating the Long-Term Effects of Federal R&D Spending: CBO’s Current Approach and Research Needs.” 
• Immigration: A CBO staff blog post on “A Call for New Research in the Area of Labor,” and CBO’s report Effects of the Immigration Surge on the Federal Budget and the Economy. 
• Infrastructure permitting: CBO blog post “A Call for New Research on Energy and the Environment,” and CBO’s 2023 cost estimate for H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act.
   

The dissertation fellowships are open to doctoral students in economics and economics-adjacent fields such as public policy at US and Canadian universities who will have advanced to dissertation candidacy by the start of the fellowship period. The dissertation research must focus on issues related to the fiscal and economic effects of innovation and productivity policies. Fellows will receive a $34,000 stipend and up to $13,000 in tuition assistance to reduce their need to work as teaching assistants.  

The non-funded fellowships are open to current dissertation students and to other recent PhDs who are conducting research on issues related to the fiscal and economic effects of innovation and productivity policies.  

The program is designed to provide both the dissertation fellows and the non-funded fellows with:

• Connection to a group of peers with similar research interests to build a network of potential collaborators. 
• Assignment of a faculty mentor with expertise in this research field. The mentor will supplement the advising resources available to students at their home institutions. 
• An invitation and financial support to participate in a workshop in Washington DC – likely in summer 2026 – that will include staff from various federal agencies. The workshop will focus on presentation and discussion of research and policy work related to R&D, innovation, and productivity.
   

Each applicant should submit the following materials:  

1. A cover letter of no more than one page summarizing the applicant’s background and providing the names and e-mail addresses of two references.
2. A curriculum vitae.
3. A research proposal of no more than one page. This proposal will be judged by its technical quality and by its relevance to research on the fiscal and economic effects of innovation and productivity policies. 
    

The JOE link to upload these materials will be posted here when available. Please upload materials no later than 11:59 pm (ET) on Thursday, January 16, 2025. Applications that are not complete by the deadline will not be considered. The NBER encourages applications from women, students who are members of groups that have historically been under-represented in the economics profession, individuals with disabilities, and veterans. 

Applications will be evaluated by a review committee consisting of Katharine Abraham (University of Maryland), Tim Bresnahan (Stanford University), Michael Clemens (George Mason University), Susan Helper (Case Western Reserve University), Glenn Hubbard (Columbia University), Zach Liscow (Yale Law School), Kim Rueben (National Tax Association), Heidi Williams (Dartmouth College), and Madeline Zavodny (University of North Florida). 

Fellowship awards will be announced by March 2025. Please direct questions about this fellowship program to Abbie Murrell (murrella@nber.org).