(2027 PhD/ABD graduates) Senior Associate (Antitrust & Competition Economics) - European Union

Charlesriverassociates; München; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance bonus

Wellness program

In-house immigration support

Job summary

Charles River Associates seeks a Senior Associate in Europe to work on high-profile competition cases, shaping economic analyses and client deliverables. You will lead econometric work, supervise junior staff, and present findings to clients and lawyers.

The position requires a PhD in economics and advanced skills in Stata, Python, R, SQL, and cloud computing, with strong teamwork and communication abilities. Minimal travel is expected; offices in multiple EU cities are available.

Qualifications

• PhD in economics with Dec 2026/Summer 2027 completion and focus on Applied Microeconomics or Applied Microeconometrics
• Experience with Excel, Stata, Python, R, SQL, SAS, ArcGIS/ArcPy, or cloud computing
• Strong explanation of economic/financial/accounting concepts and quantitative/qualitative methods
• Curiosity, analytical thinking, and initiative with leadership and teamwork
• Excellent written and oral communication skills and willingness to learn new skills

Responsibilities

• Identify and conceptualize issues, specify rigorous economic models, and perform econometric estimation
• Supervise, train and mentor research staff
• Develop and present client deliverables including expert reports and white papers
• Act as primary contact for lawyers and clients on relevant issues
• Program, build models, and run regressions in Stata, Python, R, SAS, Matlab, Mathematica
• Ensure accuracy of analyses and opinions
• Contribute to practice-building activities (training, recruiting, publications)

Skills

Economic concepts understanding

Econometrics

Statistical analysis

Teamwork & collaboration

Education

PhD in economics

Tools

Excel

Stata

Python

R

SQL

SAS

ArcGIS/ArcPy

Cloud computing (Databricks/Spark, Google Cloud, Azure, AWS)

Job description

About Charles River Associates

Charles River Associates is a leading global consulting firm that offers economic, financial, and strategic expertise to major law firms, corporations, and governments around the world. Since 1965, CRA experts have combined rigorous cutting-edge research, state-of-the-art methodology, and proven experience to address our clients’ most complex challenges.

CRA's European Competition practice specialises in providing economic advice on matters of competition policy and regulation.We assist firms and their legal advisors in all types of competition proceedings before competition authorities and courts: mergers and acquisitions, abuse of dominance allegations, cartels, restrictive commercial agreements, market investigations, litigation and disputes, intellectual property or state aid. We also provide advice to regulatory authorities in similar matters.

Learn more about our work by reviewing our Services and Industries on our website.

The Antitrust & Competition Economics is hiring for the following European Union offices in Brussels, Belgium; Dusseldorf and Munich, Germany; Paris, France.

Position Overview

Senior Associates work closely with senior consultants on project teams and will have the opportunity to immediately work on some of the largest, high profile and most significant competition cases in Europe, playing a key role in shaping the economic analysis and thinking of these cases. Successful candidates have a strong knowledge of economic concepts and a range of research and quantitative skills. A typical Senior Associate would:

• Identify and conceptualise issues, specifying rigorous economic models to analyse market issues and data, undertaking statistical and econometric estimation, and managing the work of research associate staff and colleagues;
• Supervise, train and mentor research associate staff;
• Assist in the development and presentation of client deliverables, including expert reports and white papers summarising opinions, conclusions, and recommendations using market, industry or client-proprietary data;
• Act as a primary point of contact for lawyers and other industry or government clients on a variety of practice-relevant issues;
• Program, build models and/or perform regression analyses in statistical analysis programs (such as Stata, Python, R, SAS, Matlab, and Mathematica), including large data projects requiring use of cloud computing;
• Ensure the integrity and accuracy of analyses and opinions; and
• Contribute to practice-building activities (training, recruiting, publication, expertise sharing, etc.).

Explore how CRA can help you launch your career and learn why PhDs choose CRA.

Desired Qualifications

• PhD degree in economics with a completion date of December 2026/Summer 2027 and an academic focus on Applied Microeconomics or Applied Microeconometrics, with specialisations like industrial organization, labor, health, behavioural and public economics, or other quantitative areas;
• Experience in Excel, Stata, Python, R, SQL, SAS, ArcGIS/ArcPy, or Cloud computing (Databricks/Spark, Google Cloud, Azure, AWS);
• Demonstrated understanding of, and ability to explain, economic, financial and/or accounting concepts, and quantitative and qualitative analysis methods;
• Curious and analytical thinkers who bring creative approaches to non-standard problems;
• Effective written and oral communication skills;
• Eagerness to learn new skills and programming languages;
• Demonstrated high level of initiative and leadership;
• Strong teamwork and collaboration capabilities;
• Excellent time management and task prioritization skills; and
• Clear and demonstrated interest in consulting through coursework, work experience, activities, or attendance at CRA recruiting events.

As much of our work occurs in our offices, minimal travel is required.

Career Growth and Benefits

• CRA’s robust skills development programs, including both formal and informal programs, encourage you to thrive as an individual and team member. Beginning with project management skills, training continues with team management/development, client presentation skills, internal seminars, and career mentoring and performance coaching from an assigned senior colleague. Additional leadership and collaboration opportunities exist through internal firm development activities.
• We offer a comprehensive total rewards program including a competitive salary and superior benefits package (plus a sizeable performance bonus), wellness programming to support physical, mental, emotional and financial well-being, and in-house immigration support for foreign nationals and international business travelers.

Work Location Flexibility

CRA creates a work environment that enables our colleagues to benefit from being together in the office to best deliver on our promise of career growth, mentorship and inclusivity. At the same time, we recognize that individuals realize a range of benefits when working from home periodically. We currently expect that individuals spend at least 3 to 4 days a week working in the office (which may include traveling to another CRA office or to client meetings), with specific days determined in coordination with your practice or team.

Our Commitment to Diversity

Charles River Associates is an equal opportunity employer. As part of our focus on equity and inclusion, we work to ensure a fair and consistent hiring process. We celebrate diversity and we are committed to an inclusive work environment.