Life Unleaded: Investigating the impact of public interventions to reduce drinking water lead contamination on infant health in Scotland

We are seeking to attract a PhD candidate of outstanding ability to join the University of Stirling’s Economics Division in an exciting project on the impact of lead reduction from the Glasgow water supply on pregnancy outcomes (e.g., live births, birth weight, stillbirths, miscarriage) and infant mortality over the period 1975-2000. This project involves the use of linked administrative data, which acquisition has been already secured with the support of the Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC), University of Glasgow.

The successful applicant will based at the Stirling Management School, Division of Economics.

The candidate should be ready to expand this research further to include studies on the impact of lead reduction other outcomes by liaising with the Scottish Government and Administrative Data Centres.

We invite applicants to take a look at the detailed project description that can be found by scrolling down this webpage http://ubdc.ac.uk/data-services/current-projects-spotlight/controlled-data-service-projects/].

Financial support and eligibility

This PhD is fully funded by the ESRC/SGSSS (http://www.socsciscotland.ac.uk/) and subject to ESRC eligibility criteria. Note that these criteria are less stringent because this is an economics pathway award.

The full award covers academic fees and a tax-free maintenance stipend of over £14,500 per year. The full award is available for UK citizens or EU citizens who have been resident in the UK for the last three (3) years before the start of the studentship (e.g., Oct 2018). A proportion of full awards (35%) can be made to EU students and international students to cover both fees and stipend. We invite excellent international students and other EU students to apply.

Fees only award are also available for EU students who do not meet the eligibility criteria and when the 35% cap has already been met.

Duration: The studentship starts in October 2018 and is awarded for a duration of three (+3) or four (1+3) years (if the candidate requires an MSc Economics + PhD). If the successful candidate has already undertaken (or will shortly complete) an approved course of MSc study, the scholarship will cover 3 years of PhD tuition fee, plus a tax free stipend. Otherwise, the funding will cover 4 years of study (fees plus stipend) including a one year MSc in Economics followed by a 3 year period for a PhD.


Requirements: The successful candidate is expected to have:
• A degree in Economics (or related fields such as Econometrics or Applied Statistics) if applying for the 1+3 funding.
• A Master’s degree in Economics (or related fields such as Econometrics or Applied Statistics) if applying for +3 funding

We especially welcome candidates with interest in labour, environmental and health economics and public health. Ideally, the applicant should be confident in dealing with big data, and have already conducted empirical work with statistical packages such as Stata® as part of the bachelor or master dissertation and have an understanding of quasi-experimental methods.

How to apply

Apply by 27th April 2018 5pm GMT by emailing [Email Address Removed] the following:
• A full CV
• Academic transcripts
• A completed Equal Opportunities form (available here: definitefraudstart "goo.gl"definitefraudend https://goo.gl/Cs5AaL)
• A personal statement outlining the applicant’s suitability and interest to undertake the proposed project and its expansion, paying attention to the proposal’s substantive and methodological aspects, including appropriate statistical techniques
• The names and contact details of two referees who are able to comment on the applicant’s suitability for PhD study and to undertake the advertised project

Further information this project will be supervised by Dr Mirko Moro (University of Stirling), Prof Nick Hanley (University of Glasgow), and Dr Kevin Schnepel (University of Sydney). Please direct informal enquiries about this project to Dr Mirko Moro ([Email Address Removed]).

The deadline for applications is 27th April 2018. Interviews will be held at the University of Stirling and will take place on 10th May 2018. Please check the full add below.

https://www.stir.ac.uk/scholarships/management/13-or-3-year-phd-studentship-in-economics.html