International Center for the Study of Institutions and Development (Moscow). Postdoctoral research positions. Deadline: March 25, 2014

The International Center for the Study of Institutions and Development (ICSID) at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, Russia, invites applications for postdoctoral research positions in the fields of institutional economics and comparative politics, with a special focus on state-business relations, predatory and violent behavior of state agencies, violent practices in business, and strategies of business actors to defend themselves against state predation and other forms of business-related violence.

More than 20 years after the beginning of economic transition, insecure property rights have remained an important feature of the Russian economy. Currently, researchers at ICSID are involved in a range of projects studying the institutional determinants of insecure property rights in Russia. One project examines the determinants of collective action by business actors against predatory state agencies (as represented for example by the center of public procedures “Business against Corruption”). Other topics include the institutional determinants of corporate raiding in Russia, the effect of insecure property rights on various economic outcomes in the country, or collective action in the legal profession. Successful candidates would participate in ongoing research at ICSID on these topics. Candidates whose research contains a comparative perspective or focuses on other contexts than Russia are also encouraged to apply. 

The job involves:

• working under the direct supervision of Andrey Yakovlev, director of ICSID (ayakovlev@hse.ru)
• successful candidates are encouraged to pursue their own research in parallel with ongoing research at ICSID
• writing research papers for international peer-reviewed journals in co-authorship with researchers at ICSID
• some teaching as well as one or two public presentations of the candidate’s own research are also encouraged
• participation in organization of events and other contributions to the development of ICSID

Requirements:

• a PhD from an international research university in Economics, Political science, Law, or Law and Economics
• ability to work in a team
• fluent English
• knowledge of the Russian language is an asset, but is not required

General conditions for Post-Doctoral Research positions can be found here. Appointments will be normally made for one year.

A CV, research statement and two letters of recommendation should be sent to fellowship@hse.ru  by March 25, 2014.

The HSE is a young, dynamic, fast-growing Russian research university providing unique research opportunities. Three years ago, the HSE started an ambitious program to create international research laboratories headed jointly by Russian and foreign scholars. As one of these laboratories, the International Center for the Study of Institutions and Development (ICSID) brings together leading Russian and foreign experts to conduct cutting edge research on the institutional foundations of growth and development.