PhD Position in Economics (Economic History, Family Economics, Demographic Economics) at IÉSEG School of Management & Université de Lille IÉSEG School of Management and University of Lille in France

The IÉSEG School of Management and the LEM (UMR 9221), a research unit at the University of Lille, are offering a fully funded 3-year PhD position in Economics. The research will focus on economic history, family economics, and economic growth using historical data, with a particular emphasis on the intersection of economic history, health economics, and development economics. The project, titled 'Access to Healthcare, Human Capital and Economic Growth in France,' will explore how inequalities in access to medical services have shaped demographic behavior, human capital accumulation, and regional economic trajectories during France’s transition to modern economic growth in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

The PhD candidate will be integrated into the broader research agenda of the ANR project 'Families, Migration and Long-run Economic Growth in Europe' (FaMiGrowth), which studies long-term interactions between demographic behavior, mobility, and economic development. The candidate will benefit from access to large-scale genealogical data infrastructure and collaborations with researchers working on family dynamics, migration, and intergenerational outcomes across Europe. The dissertation will situate the French case within a wider comparative perspective and explore how health conditions interacted with family structures, mobility decisions, and demographic change over the long run.

Empirically, the candidate will contribute to constructing and analyzing a novel dataset measuring access to healthcare across French municipalities between the mid-nineteenth and early twentieth century, based on historical registers of medical practitioners. Combined with genealogical data and census records, these data will allow the candidate to investigate how the diffusion of medical practitioners affected infant mortality, fertility, migration, longevity, and education. The dissertation will also examine whether early-life exposure to healthcare translated into long-term socioeconomic advantages and contributed to persistent differences in local development. Potential outcomes include human capital formation, occupational trajectories, geographic mobility, and local economic performance.

Applicants must have a master's degree in economics or econometrics, strong knowledge in relevant fields, proficiency in English, and experience with econometric software such as STATA, SAS, or R. The position offers a gross salary of 2300€/month and is fully funded for three years. The application deadline is April 15, 2026. Interested candidates should apply online via the provided link.