PhD in Economics
Presentation
Our program prepares students for successful careers in universities and academic centers as well as in central banks and public and private sector institutions. Many years of successful placements, as well as the career paths of our graduates, speak to the value added of our PhD program. This high value has been recognized with the recent award of the María de Maeztu Excellence Distinction. This highly selective distinction is awarded by Spain’s National Research Agency to “fund and accredit public research centers and units in any scientific area that demonstrate international scientific impact and leadership and actively collaborate with their social and business environment.”
Our students enjoy a stimulating academic environment with accessible and supportive faculty. The program comprises two stages: stage one, coursework; and stage two, research. The coursework stage provides students with state of the art tools to successfully conduct research in an ample range of areas in Economics. The research stage fosters an international and interactive academic environment in which students grow to develop an independent and productive career. The typical duration of studies is five to six years. Students who successfully complete the two stages are awarded the degrees Master in Economics and Finance and PhD in Economics and Government. The Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo awards the official degrees of the CEMFI Graduate Program.
"It has changed the way I think, the way I ask and answer questions about the world around me and, of course, it has put me in a career path that would have been unthinkable had I not been part of this institution."
Felipe Carozzi, London School of Economics
CEMFI PhD 2015
"CEMFI's PhD Program allowed me to get first an internship and then a job at the European Central Bank."
Victor López, European Central Bank
CEMFI PhD 2004
"Reputed and very engaged faculty, perfect size, student-professor proximity, passion for Economics, privileged location, awesome city, a great push for a career in academia or the private sector. I cannot think of a better place for undertaking graduate education in Economics."
Joan Llull, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
CEMFI PhD 2011
"At CEMFI, I found an academic environment that was challenging and highly supportive to help achieve my goals. Pursuing a PhD is a long and enduring journey. It is encouraging to know that faculty, staff and peers do not want to leave you behind."
Jorge de la Roca, University of Southern California
CEMFI PhD 2012
"It has changed the way I think, the way I ask and answer questions about the world around me and, of course, it has put me in a career path that would have been unthinkable had I not been part of this institution."
Felipe Carozzi, London School of Economics
CEMFI PhD 2015
"As a graduate student at CEMFI, I enjoyed high-quality teaching and dedicated mentoring from first-class international scholars in a very collegial and friendly environment. Over the years, I have seen how the prestige and reputation of CEMFI has grown to become one of the best graduate schools in economics in Europe."
Victor Aguirregabiria, University of Toronto
CEMFI PhD 1995
"CEMFI provides a supportive and intellectually stimulating environment that allows for close interaction with exceptionally talented and motivated faculty. The constant supervision I have received as a PhD student has been priceless to develop my skills for conducting research."
Alessandro Galesi, Bank of Spain
CEMFI PhD 2015
"A time of tremendous intellectual and personal growth thanks to the combination of three things: the high quality of the curriculum, the guidance and encouragement of the faculty to produce frontier research, and the quality of my classmates. CEMFI is the place for those who want to thrive in their future academic careers!"
Elena Manresa, NYU
CEMFI PhD 2015
"Cemfi offers an extremely stimulating academic environment fostering the interaction between first-rate faculty and motivated students. It provided me with a solid training in quantitative economics and critical thinking."
Jesus Bueren Calabuig, European University Institute
CEMFI PhD 2018
"I will always remember the multiple and long meetings with my advisor, Manuel Arellano, sitting on the sofa in his office, giving me guidance on how to better continue with my dissertation work. The personalized attention and dedication to student growth is a unique aspect of the PhD program at CEMFI."
Gema Zamarro, University of Arkansas
CEMFI PhD 2006
"The six years at CEMFI changed my perspective on life. I grew up to be a fully confident and independent researcher. CEMFI gives students the feeling that each of us is a significant part of it, and such a high sense of community is really rare."
Jin Huang, NYU Shanghai
CEMFI PhD 2017
"Perhaps the most unique feature of CEMFI’s Ph.D. program is the close contact with faculty members and visiting researchers, who hail from some of the best universities in the world. The connections I made during my doctoral studies still benefit me in my professional development today."
Jan Bietenbeck, Lund University
CEMFI PhD 2015
"CEMFI actively pursues the excellence of its academic program and the strength of its open, increasingly diverse, community. These elements (and the wisdom of my advisers) were key in making my doctoral studies a highly fulfilling experience in every dimension."
Martín (Tincho) Almuzara, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
CEMFI PhD 2020
"I found professors who were not only leading researchers in their fields, but also warm and accessible, with whom it was possible to openly discuss any progress in my own research. I benefited a lot from this close supervision during my PhD."
Hernan Ruffo, Universidad Torcuato Di Tella
CEMFI PhD 2011
"CEMFI offers an ideal intellectual environment: professors are role models and truly mentors of students; and professors and students are bonded by the pursuit of academic excellence. I remember my years at CEMFI as challenging, inspiring, and highly rewarding. A truly extraordinary opportunity that shaped my career"
David López-Salido, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
CEMFI PhD 1995
"Never stop learning. That is the best way to define what you will find at CEMFI. If you love economics, you will enjoy every single day you spend there."
Manuel García Santana, Universitat Pompeu Fabra
CEMFI PhD 2012
"I have always thought that my professional career would have been very different had I not completed CEMFI’s Master degree. My stay allowed me to strengthen my knowledge of Economics, Econometrics and Finance and gave me the opportunity to explore the academic world. Not surprisingly, I enrolled in CEMFI's PhD Program!"
Alejandro Requejo, Compass Lexecon
CEMFI PhD 1997
"The academic environment at CEMFI is remarkable: it is highly stimulating and extremely collegial. I always felt fully supported by my peers in the program, staff and members of faculty. Their dedication to students' personal growth opened up an incredibly rewarding career path for me."
Andreas Stegmann, University of Warwick
CEMFI PhD 2019
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