The Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) offers a position for a PhD student / Research Assistant in the context of a project financed by the European Commission H-2020 Program under Energy Efficiency Call (H2020-EE-2016-2017): CONSEED: CONSumer Energy Efficiency Decision making.
CONSEED will develop a model of consumer decision making using existing models and empirical data to research on consumer's behaviour related to energy efficiency. It will then generate a comprehensive database of empirical data on the factors a range of consumer groups (households, services, agricultural and industrial sectors) consider at the point of sale for appliances/machinery, buildings and transport through focus groups, consumer surveys, field trials and choice experiments in different geographical locations. Using this database, it will characterise and test the model of consumer decision making - in particular, it will examine the interaction of different consumers with existing energy efficiency policies aimed at influencing consumer decisions at the point of sale such as EU labelling schemes for appliances, buildings and cars – and make policy recommendations based on the empirical evidence collected.
The researcher will mainly contribute to the project although collaborations in other projects and tasks will also be required.
Specifically the Research Assistant will:
- Undertake in depth reviews of the energy efficiency literature
- Assist in the data gathering, and statistical and econometric analysis of the empirical data
- Write reports
- Assist in the design and analysis of a case study in Spain, involving focus groups, consumer surveys and a field trial
- Any other task required in research projects in which s/he will be involved
- Engage in the preparation of a PhD dissertation under the PhD program of the University of the Basque Country (Universidad del País Vasco / Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, UPV-EHU)
Minimum qualifications
- The applicant must hold a post-graduate in economics that would formally entitle him/her to embark on a doctorate for the academic course 2016-2017 (Master Degree or minimum 300 ECTS), and be willing to be enrolled in the PhD Program of the University of the Basque Country (Universidad del País Vasco / Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, UPV-EHU). Useful information can be found at: http://www.ehu.eus/en/web/mde/doktoregoa
- Strong background in quantitative economics (econometrics)
- The applicant must know how to use an statistical-econometric software such as STATA, R, Limdep (NLOGIT), MATLAB or similar
- The applicant must have excellent interpersonal as well communication skills (written and oral) in English
Preferred qualifications / skills
- Knowledge on consumer choice energy efficiency models and experimental/behavioural economics will be a plus
- Expertise in designing and analysing households’ consumer surveys will be valued
- Knowledge of Spanish and/or Basque will be desirable
Envisaged starting date of the contract: Starting date is negotiable, but ideally would be in December 2016 – January 2017
Location: Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3), Bilbao, Spain
Tenure: The position will be for a period of 24 months (extensible to 12 more months), with a 6 month probation period
Salary: The position will carry competitive salaries according to the academic and professional profile of the applicant and excellent conditions of work
Applications: Interested applicants should send the application to the Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3), human resources (hr@bc3research.org) including in the subject “Research Assistant position for CONSEED project”. The application should include:
1. One page motivation letter in English,
- Explaining the motivation for conducting a PhD, and to dedicate her/his research to the topic for the next years
- Explaining the applicant’s background and expertise, with a focus on the skills, knowledge and aptitude they would bring to the position.
2. Curriculum Vitae (maximum 3 pages), including: education (indicating the grade point average of the bachelor degree and master degree), courses taken as relevant for the position, specific technical skills, and previous work related to the topic (master’s thesis, reports and others)
3. Two reference / support letters with the corresponding contacts
Informal enquiries can be made to Dr. Ibon Galarraga (ibon.galarraga@bc3research.org.), Dr. Amaia de Ayala (amaia.deayala@bc3research.org) or to BC3's Projects Office (projectsoffice@bc3research.org).
Closing date: 30th of October, 2016 (CET: 17:00)
Call Document:
Phd position conseed