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Why study at RGS Econ

State-of-the-Art Program

The doctoral program of the Ruhr Graduate School of Economics (RGS Econ) is structured (to enable you to obtain your Ph.D. within 4 years) and professional (you are expected to pass a comprehensive first-year course program, attend research seminars and work closely with your supervisor). Its curriculum conveys state-of-the art methods and topical overviews at the research frontier and we strongly support our student’s career development and placement. Our faculty members are prominent researchers in their fields, supporting high quality dissertations for our students.

In these respects, RGS Econ is like many other renowned, internationally competitive PhD programs. Three aspects of the program and the research environment distinguish RGS Econ from most other programs, however.

Cooperative Learning Environment

First, RGS Econ places strong emphasis on a co-operative environment and atmosphere, conducive to joint learning and collaborative research. Many graduate schools inevitably compel their students to compete for funding after the first year. RGS Econ provides a funding guarantee to eliminate this competition which often hinders teamwork and the uninhibited exchange of ideas. Furthermore, a ratio of professors to students of almost 1:1, a small cohort of students, and numerous joint events - from soft-skill seminars and social events to workshops, a rotating lecture where students meet faculty members, and retreats in which students present their current research - facilitate the exchange of ideas in an environment free of reprisals and encourage joint research projects both among students and among students and faculty. We also strive to create this kind of open environment beyond RGS Econ and its associated institutions by annually organizing a prominent refereed RGS Doctoral Conference in Economics as well as opening our courses to external doctoral students whenever capacity allows.

Creating Research Opportunities

Second, RGS Econ - through its combination of four departments and a leading research institute involved in policy analysis and evaluation - is able to provide students with research opportunities across a broad range of fields. During their first year, students of the entering cohort are located at the RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research in Essen. Next to completing their core course requirements, they here experience the day-to-day workings of a research institute through numerous seminars, bag lunches and interaction with the institute's more than 50 researchers. Many students will subsequently continue their dissertation phase at on the of the universities’ department. Thus, students experience research early on, have access and exposure to multiple research environments, and are able choose the one that best suits their research interests and inclinations (possibly switching environments for different projects).

Research Focus and Supervision from the Start

Third, RGS Econ takes great care to match each entering student to current supervisory capacity based on interest and expertise. A key goal of interviews conducted during the admission process is to find out if we can provide excellent supervision to the student. Accordingly, we usually assign a primary supervisor in an admission offer. This ensures that entering students get a head-start for their research projects and obtain effective supervision from the start. Of course, this does not preclude working with other getting input from other faculty members or even switching the primary supervisor at a later stage.

RGS Econ is especially well-suited for you if, next to obtaining a comprehensive state-of-the-art education in economics and completing a high-quality dissertation, you are interested a co-operative learning environment, if you consider collaborative research projects as an opportunity, and if you value the option to conduct first-rate research in many fields of economics without from the start having to commit to either theoretical, empirical, or applied work, while getting exposed to all of these.

Extended Research Network and International Environment

Diversity is an important and valued factor contributing to the open intellectual environment at RGS Econ. We strongly encourage international students to apply. About a quarter to a third of our students are from abroad. English is not only the language of instruction, but also the language used in day-to-day communication.

We also strongly encourage our students to make use of our extensive international research network and those of our cooperating institutions. Renowned specialists in their fields from all over the world teach short-courses at RGS Econ or present their work in research seminars, generating many opportunities for our students to develop their research networks.

RGS Econ financially supports students' research stays at other institutions, conference participation and summer schools. Research stays are not on a structured exchange basis, but rather geared to the individual interests and needs of the student. Interested students usually consult with their supervisor to determine and get in touch with relevant colleagues from RGS Econ's wide range of global contacts. This informal system has been very successful, with research stays in places such as: Aarhus (Denmark), Stern (New York, USA), Berkeley (California, USA), University of the Basque Country (Bilbao, Spain).

Placement

RGS Econ students often move directly into prestigious research positions; around two thirds of our graduates become professional researchers. Some of our alumni are now working as researchers and lecturers at the RWI, DIW, ZEW, TU Dortmund, the University of Liverpool, Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University Duisburg-Essen, Victoria University of Wellington, Dartmouth College, the Deutsche Bundesbank, and many other places.

Other alumni are working for private-sector institutions closely associated with economics, such as Deutsche Bank, ThyssenKrupp Consulting, KPMG and McKinsey & Company.

Testimonials

In the words of some of our current students and alumni, here is what you can look forward to at the RGS.

"RGS Econ supports its PhD students in participating at high ranked international conferences and supports research stays abroad. This is not only a nice job variation but also creates contacts to researchers across the globe, which might be useful in the later career."

Michael Kind

"RGS Econ perfectly allows students to balance research career with social life. The atmosphere in RGS is especially friendly and cooperative. Moreover, Essen Philharmonie and Folkwang Art museum are just 3 minutes away by walk."

Rui Dang

“RGS Econ is an outstanding Ph.D. program: Combining the expertise of three universities and one of Germany’s leading research institutes in economics it creates an inspiring environment for a starting researcher. Moreover the Ruhr area and its surroundings are one of Germany’s greatest places to live: More than five million people who live and work here bear witness to that.“

Simon Decker

“RGS Econ gives the opportunity to discuss ideas with colleagues from the participating institutions and to use the infrastructure of datasets available at the RWI.”

Adam Pilny

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