Doctoral student (f/m/d) Socio-Economic Panel

The Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), a research-driven infrastructure based at DIW Berlin, is one of the largest and longest running multidisciplinary panel studies worldwide, and currently surveys around 30,000 people in nearly 15,000 households. SOEP aims to capture social change and thus handles a constant stream of new and diverse topics and tasks. Its data collection and generation adhere to the concept of the survey or data life cycle.

Within the SOEP, the ERC-funded project WEALTHTRAJECT, led by Prof. Dr. Philipp Lersch, will comprehensively and systematically investigate diversity in long-term wealth accumulation trajectories within and between social groups. The project breaks new ground by combining longitudinal data from surveys and registers with new biographical data on wealth, making it possible for the first time to map wealth trajectories over more extended periods of people’s lives.

Starting from 1^st Dec 2024, DIW Berlin is looking for a

Doctoral student (f/m/d)

(Part-time 75%)

This position is suitable for furthering scientific training according to Section 2, paragraph 1 of the Act on Fixed-Term Employment Contracts in Academic (WissZeitVG).

Your responsibilities:

• Research on variability in wealth trajectories over life courses within the WEALTHTRAJECT project
• Develop your research agenda within the project
• Close research collaboration with team members and international partners
• Conceptualization, realization, and publication of research in international peer-reviewed journals
• Presentations of research at national and international conferences

Your qualifications:

• Completed (or soon to be completed) an excellent university degree in sociology, economics or a closely related field
• Experience with analysis of large-scale panel surveys and data management
• Proficiency in using Stata and/or R
• Fluency in scientific English

What we offer:

A job at a research institute with around 300 colleagues, where diversity, equal opportunities, and a healthy work-life balance guide all areas of work. Flexible work schedules tailored to your needs as well as remote work are key parts of our work culture.

An exciting and varied job where you will gain deep insights into a research institute as well as national and international science systems. At DIW Berlin, you will have the perfect opportunity to gain further subject-specific training at an institute where science and politics intersect.

DIW Berlin supports your professional and personal qualification and advancement via internal and external career development opportunities and annual performance reviews.

You are paid according to the collective agreement for the public sector (Tarifvertrag des öffentlichen Dienstes, TVöD Bund), which includes an annual bonus as well as a company pension with VBL Ost.

The office is located in the middle of Berlin-Mitte convenient to public transportation. As a DIW Berlin employee, you are eligible for a reduced VBB-Firmenticket that is partially subsidized.

This is a fixed-term position limited to a period of 4 years. Remuneration is paid according to TVöD Bund, salary group E13.

The position is linked to the possibility of obtaining a doctorate. It would be an advantage to be integrated in the structured doctoral program, preferably in the Berlin area (for example BGSS). A doctoral agreement will be concluded with DIW Berlin, which guarantees, among other things, qualified individual supervision.

Application and information:

We value diversity and welcome all applications regardless of gender, disability, nationality, or ethnic or social origin. If you’re interested in the position, we are excited to hear from you!

Please apply online by 30.08.24 quoting the reference number SOEP-10-24 and including a cover letter, CV, copies of degree certificates, and a one-page research exposé for your doctoral research within the project. Please do not include a photo. If you have any questions about the online application, contact recruiting(at)diw.de.

In-person interviews are planned to take place in the calendar weeks 37. and 38.

You can find more information about DIW Berlin on our website, www.diw.de. Please contact Prof. Dr. Philipp Lersch (plersch(at)diw.de) for more information on the specific tasks and responsibilities of this position.

DIW Berlin (German Institute for Economic Research) has been one of Germany’s leading economic research institutes since 1925. It analyzes economic and social scientific relationships in societally relevant research areas and uses the findings to provide advice to policymakers and society at large. DIW Berlin is a part of national and international networks, provides research infrastructure that is used worldwide, and supports young researchers in their careers. DIW Berlin is independent and, as a member of the Leibniz Association, is financed primarily by public funds.