Empirical Research Fellow

Northwestern University; Evanston (IL); On-site; USD 34,000 - 41,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

J-1 visa support

Job summary

Northwestern University’s Kellogg Finance Department seeks Empirical Research Associates for full-time, year-long appointments. You will collaborate on multiple finance projects and perform statistical analyses using Python, R, Stata, and MATLAB, including data scraping and NLP tasks.

The ideal candidate has a strong quantitative background and programming skills; economics or finance background is helpful but not required. Start date targeted July 1, 2027.

Qualifications

• Strong quantitative background with programming in Python/R.
• Experience with large databases and statistical analyses.
• Familiarity with web scraping and data collection.
• Exposure to NLP and text analysis welcomed.

Responsibilities

• Perform statistical analyses on large datasets.
• Scrape data from websites and non-traditional sources.
• Develop ML/NLP models to derive economic measures.
• Prepare results for presentations and publications.
• Collaborate with faculty on multiple research projects.

Skills

Python

R

Stata

MATLAB

Data scraping

OCR tools

Machine learning

NLP / Text analysis

Tools

Python

R

Stata

MATLAB

OCR software

Web scraping tools

Job description

Department: Kellogg Finance

The Kellogg Finance Department is looking for highly skilled and motivated individuals to work as full-time Empirical Research Associates for a period of at least one year. We will review applications on a rolling basis, with a target initial review on October 15, 2026. (We will also continue reviewing applications received after that date until the positions are filled.)

The position entails close collaboration on a number of finance projects with specific members of the department. Specifically, we are recruiting in the following areas (listed in alphabetical order by faculty sponsor); details are included in the attached pages for each position. Please indicate by checking boxes on the accompanying form the area(s) you are most interested in. For more information on the types of research projects you would be working on, please visit the faculty members’ websites.

• Macroeconomics and Finance. Faculty sponsor: Sage Belz.
• Empirical Corporate and Business History. Faculty sponsor: Carola Frydman.
• Finance and Development (2 positions). Faculty sponsors: Sean Higgins, Dean Karlan, Jacopo Ponticelli.
• Payments and Finance. Faculty sponsors: Sean Higgins and Lulu Wang.
• Labor and Finance; Data, Payments, and Competition in Financial Intermediation . Faculty sponsors: Maddalena Ronchi, Lulu Wang.
• Empirical Corporate/Household Finance, Innovation, Labor Economics, and Financial Intermediation . Faculty sponsors: David Matsa, Gregor Matvos.
• Macro-Finance, Technology, and Labor . Faculty sponsors: Dmitris Papanikolaou, Bryan Seegmiller.
• Empirical Research Generalist (2 positions). Faculty sponsor: Varies by project.

Research Duties Vary, But May Include

• Performing statistical analyses on large databases utilizing R, Python, Stata, MATLAB, or other programming languages.
• Scraping data from websites and non-traditional data sources.
• Utilizing OCR tools, data parsing, AI, and text analysis to create novel datasets (e.g., based on historical records).
• Designing and running experiments.
• Implementing Python-based machine learning and natural language processing tools to create economic measures from textual data
• Economic modeling (including solving models by hand or programming dynamic models)
• Conducting literature reviews.
• Writing up results for presentations and publications.
• Actively participating in project meetings and discussions with existing research teams.

Previous holders of this position have participated in graduate courses at Northwestern during their time as research fellows (including macroeconomics, microeconomics, asset pricing, and real analysis) and gone on to top Ph.D. programs in economics and finance including Chicago, Princeton, Kellogg, MIT, NYU, Stanford, UC Berkeley, and Yale.

The ideal candidate will have a strong quantitative background and programming skills, and the ability to work independently. Prior background in economics or finance is useful but not necessary; we welcome candidates with strong technical backgrounds who are looking for more exposure in these fields. This opportunity is ideal for candidates looking to develop their empirical and theoretical skills in preparation for pursuing a graduate program in economics or finance.

The starting date is negotiable, but we are targeting a start date of July 1, 2027. Salary Compensation is $25.55 per hour, and we provide standard benefits such as health insurance. Note for international applicants: Kellogg will provide the research fellow with the necessary J-1 Research Scholar visa, subject to USCIS rules and regulations.

Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected characteristics, including disability and veteran status. View Northwestern’s non-discrimination statement . Job applicants who wish to request an accommodation in the application or hiring process should contact the Office of Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance. View additional information on the accommodations process .