Columbia University

Position Title/Short Description

Full Text of JOE Listing:

The Columbia Initiative for Policy Dialogue, a research center at the Columbia Business School, seeks a Part Time Associate Research Scholar. The researcher will work with the Center’s Principal Researchers and a small team on an international research and capacity building project that focuses on sovereign debt sustainability and the international financial architecture.

The goal of the project is to conduct research on the workings of sovereign debt markets and debt sustainability, to improve the understanding of macroeconomic disequilibria, sovereign debt crises and their resolution, and to enhance knowledge of debt management practices. This role is contingent on grant funding.

Responsibilities:
Under the supervision of the Principal Researcher, the successful applicant will:

● Produce new academic research on debt sustainability. This will include work on Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA) methodologies and how they can and should be changed to incorporate endogeneity of the key variables and the shocks that debtor countries face (including climate variability).
● Draw on the latest academic research and proven practical insights to produce technical tools (such as better DSAs and forecasting models enabling the analysis of the consequences of alternative debt restructuring proposals) that can be applied in countries under debt distress.
• Assist the Principal Researchers in determining the most appropriate research techniques with which to address the research questions.
• Identify target academic journals for submission of papers.
• Conduct technical and policy research on sovereign debt sustainability and financial architecture reform, using data sets already in use by the Initiative for Policy Dialogue and alternative public data sources.
• Create, as necessary, and maintain files and databases, for input and maintenance of the Center’s evolving global debt database.

Minimum Degree Required:
• Ph.D. degree or equivalent in economics, finance, international relations, or law

Minimum Qualifications:
• Detailed understanding of sovereign debt and the international finance architecture
• Strong English writing skills required. A second language is a plus.
• Strong interest and demonstrated expertise in research on sovereign debt particularly in emerging markets and developing countries.
• Self-motivated, flexible, and able to work effectively in a fast-paced environment