PhD in Economics
The Chicago School of Economics. It all started here at the University of Chicago.
Fields of specialization in the Economics Stevens Doctoral Program include price theory, market design, industrial organization, behavioral economics, development economics, labor economics, public economics, health economics, urban economics, and economic history.
Our Distinguished Economics Faculty
Chicago Booth faculty have been responsible for many of the pioneering economic concepts that inform today’s global businesses and policymaking. And they’ll be your teachers, mentors, and research collaborators. For our macroeconomics faculty, visit the Booth faculty directory and select “Macro/International Business” under “Academic Area.”
Alumni Success
Alumni have written dissertations in industrial organization, labor economics, microeconomics, and other related areas. Upon graduation, they go onto Career Outcomes in academics, government, and industry.
Olivia Bordeu, MA '24, PhD '24
2024-2025: Postdoctoral Scholar; 2025: Assistant Professor of Economics
2024-2025: International Economics Section (IES), Princeton University; 2025: Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley
Olivia studies topics in urban and spatial economics. She is currently focused on understanding the mechanisms behind different geographic costs or frictions, such as the determinants of commuting costs in cities and frictions to the mobility of capital across cities. Her dissertation area is in economics.
Nick Tsivanidis, PhD '18
Assistant Professor in the Real Estate Group
Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley
Nick researches topics related to urbanization in developing countries. His current interests center on policy issues around transport and housing, with projects in India, Nigeria, Colombia and Brazil. His dissertation area is in economics.
A Network of Support
Doctoral students at Booth have access to the resources of several high-powered research centers that offer funding for student work, host workshops and conferences, and foster a strong research community.
Becker Friedman Institute for Economics
Bringing together researchers from the entire Chicago economics community, the Becker Friedman Institute fosters novel insights on the world’s most difficult economic problems.
George J. Stigler Center for the Study of the Economy and the State
Dedicated to examining issues at the intersection of politics and the economy, the Stigler Center supports research by Doctoral students and others who are interested in the political, economic, and cultural obstacles to better working markets.
Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation
Committed to making the world more equitable and sustainable, the Rustandy Center works to solve complex social and environmental problems. The center’s student support includes fellowships, research funding, and networking opportunities.
Fama-Miller Center for Research in Finance
Tasked with pushing the boundaries of research in finance, the Fama-Miller Center provides institutional structure and support for researchers in the field.
Center for Research in Security Prices
CRSP maintains one of the world’s largest and most comprehensive stock market databases. Since 1963, it has been a valued resource for businesses, government, and scholars.
The Kent A. Clark Center for Global Markets
Enhancing the understanding of business and financial market globalization, the Clark Center for Global Markets positions Chicago Booth as a thought leader in the understanding of ever-changing markets and improves financial and economic decision-making around the world.
Scholarly Publications
Chicago Booth is home to some of the most prestigious academic journals in economics.
The Journal of Labor Economics presents international research on the relationship between labor and the economy.
The Journal of Law and Economics has published some of the most influential and widely cited articles on a broad range of economic topics.
The Journal of Political Economy, one of the oldest economics journals in the world, focuses on the relationship between government and the economy.
Spotlight on Research
Our faculty and PhD students continually produce high-level research. The Chicago Booth Review frequently highlights their contributions in economics.
To Keep Students Focused, Try Paying Their Parents
A study of subsidized training programs and incentives. Research from Hamna Ahmed (Lahore School of Economics), Zunia Tirmazee (Lahore), Rebecca Wu (UChicago PhD), and Emma Zhang (Chicago Booth PhD), suggest that including parents in decision-making may be most effective.
To Keep Students Focused, Try Paying Their Parents
How Demolishing Public Housing Increased Inequity
A study by Chicago Booth's Milena Almagro, Eric Chyn (University of Texas), and Bryan A. Stuart (Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia) investigate what happened to Chicago's public housing system and find that demolishing public housing increased inequality.
How Demolishing Public Housing Increased Inequity
Why Medical Tourism Could Be Good Policy
Rather than investing in putting more medical facilities in remote areas, it could be more effective to pay for patients to visit healthcare facilities, according to research by Chicago Booth's Johnathan Dingel, Joshua D. Gottlieb (UChicago Harris School), Maya Lozinski (Harris PhD) and Pauline Mourot (Chicago Booth PhD).
Why Medical Tourism Could Be Good Policy
NBER Dissertation Fellowship in Consumer Financial Management
The National Bureau of Economics (NBER) awarded PhD Student, Benedict Guttman-Kenney, a dissertation fellowship to support his research in the economics of credit information.
NBER Dissertation Fellowship in Consumer Financial ManagementInside the Booth PhD Experience
Nick Tsivanidis, PhD ’18, talks about the culture of interdisciplinary study he found at Booth.
Nick Tsivanidis, ’18: 00:03
My PhD thesis was about how commute costs shape economic organization in cities. Billions of people over the next 50, 100 years, they're going to be moving into mostly developing cities. Governments are going to spend huge amounts of money on providing new infrastructure to try and accommodate them. My project had both macro and applied micro elements. One of the benefits of Booth is that you have access to people from a wide range of areas who are very happy to encourage you to work on interdisciplinary topics.
Nick Tsivanidis, ’18: 00:38
I've always been interested in development and in particular how cities and countries can use evidence-based policy to try and improve welfare of their citizens. I've decided that pursuing a PhD would allow me to research and help translate that research into policy. What attracted me to the PhD program here at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business was this culture of interdisciplinary study. People at Chicago certainly aren't scared or will shy away from trying to think at the intersection of different areas. This is where a lot of very fruitful and productive new research actually takes place, which is at the border of frontiers. That really attracted me to come here.
Current Economics Students
From the effects of government regulation on economies to the impact of urban transit infrastructures, our PhD students examine a wide range of economic issues. When they graduate, they go on to positions at some of the top universities and companies in the world.
Franco Calle
Hannah Case
Emily Crawford
Paulo Henrique de Alcantara Ramos
Camille Hillion
Chuhan Guo
Tyler Jacobson
Nidhaanjit Jain
Muqi (Bill) Lai
Kevin Lee
Jerry Ma
Sean McMahon
Milad Mozafari-Vanani
Fern Ramoutar
Pengyu Ren
Gabriele Romano
Jorge Tello Garza
Julia Wu
Zizhe Xia
Emily (Emma) Zhang
Michelle Zheng
Program Expectations and Requirements
The Stevens Doctoral Program at Chicago Booth is a full-time program. Students generally complete the majority of coursework and examination requirements within the first two years of studies and begin work on their dissertation during the third year. In addition to coursework, students are required to meet the divisional teaching requirement by completing a total of 5 teaching assistantships, typically in years three and four.
For details, see General Examination Requirements by Area in the Stevens Program Guidebook below.