PhD in Economics, Analytics and Decision Sciences

EADS is an international PhD program hosted by the IMT School, one of the seven Schools of Excellence in Italy, and one of the highest-rated graduate schools in Europe, according to the most recent U-Multirank survey. The IMT School provides rigorous training and close supervision in a variety of disciplines in the social, human, and natural sciences, welcoming multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches at their boundaries.

The IMT School is a truly international environment with students from all around the world. The School has a record of placing students in top research universities, policy-making institutions, and companies. English is the official language of the School.

EADS trains students to undertake cutting-edge research in a wide range of economic and social disciplines with a unique multidisciplinary approach that relies on the unifying language of statistics and data science, as well as on selected tools from computer science and psychology.

EADS students also have the opportunity to complete their research projects under joint supervision (double-degree) with partner universities, including KU Leuven and the University of Alicante. All students are encouraged to spend part of their studies abroad, both within the Erasmus+ framework and through ad hoc mobility agreements.

What EADS offers

• International, vibrant, and interdisciplinary research environment
• Rigorous training in economics, analytics, and decision science
• Opportunity to meet leading researchers who visit IMT every year
• Free double room accommodation for 3 years with the possibility of a single room or support for external rental
• Desk on the campus
• Everyday free meals (lunch and dinner) at the IMT canteen for 3 years
• Scholarship €16,243/year for up to four years
• Participation in an exchange program
• Double degree programs

The PhD program EADS is structured as follows.

In the first year, students take a set of fixed bundles of basic courses in economics, analytics, and decision sciences as well as several elective advanced courses that prepare students to conduct research in their specific area of interest. Laboratory activities on coding, collection of empirical evidence, and data analysis are offered together with several long seminars run by faculty members who are external to the IMT School.

Elective refresher courses in economics and quantitative methods are offered (online) just before the beginning of the PhD program. Teaching is mostly carried out by members of the AXES research unit, with significant contributions from members of MOMILAB, NETWORKS, SYSMA, DYSCO, and LYNX.

In the years 2-4, students engage in their research, under the guidance of the faculty members from one of the research units. Students are expected to present their research projects in the second year.

Students also have the opportunity to complete their research projects under joint supervision (double-degree) with partner universities, including KU Leuven and the University of Alicante. All students are encouraged to spend part of their studies abroad, both within the Erasmus+ framework and through ad-hoc mobility agreements.

All Research units at the IMT School organize regular seminars by external and internal faculty members which complement the coursework with exposure to the latest research. Speakers at the seminars are leading researchers from all around the world.

There are also several active reading groups covering a variety of research areas where students can present their work in progress or discuss ideas and interesting papers. Students are encouraged to present their research in internal seminar series and reading groups.

The Program prepares to face, analyze, and solve a wide spectrum of complex and policy-relevant problems at the institutional, social, and industrial levels, with the primary objective of identifying sustainable solutions and designing effective intervention policies in the economic and social spheres as well as in business life.

EADS graduates will have strong competencies in the analysis of economic decision-making and in the statistical-econometric analysis of data and economic evidence, plus individual specialization along the lines of economics and management, management and decision sciences, or economics and decision sciences.

The EADS program welcomes candidates with training in one of the following subject areas: economics, management, statistics, law, physics, computer science, engineering, logic and philosophy of science, mathematics, cognitive and behavioral sciences, or in contiguous areas.

The ideal candidate is interested in acquiring distinctive competencies in economics, analytics, and decision sciences, but does not necessarily need to have previous training in these areas.

However, the candidate must demonstrate solid quantitative skills, comparable with those typically acquired in economics-managerial degrees.

Job placement opportunities encompass academia (various disciplines, especially economic sciences, and statistics), public administration, international institutions, research laboratories, study centers, and regulatory authorities, as well as private companies (services, industry, and professional advice).

Past graduates in economic disciplines from the IMT School are currently working at leading universities, international institutions, research centers, banks, insurance and consulting companies, innovative startups, and other private companies, with a focus on quantitative assessment and solution of complex problems