Thanks. My knowledge of what predocs are and what they involve is very limited. I hope to update this post with more information. It might be nice if RA jobs at EA orgs could take on the equivalence if a predoc, but I’m not sure how feasible this is.
They’re increasingly a soft requirement for entry into top PhD programs
To make it clear, I think you mean that it increasingly is a requirement, but not officially.
It’s a very educational experience (you’re forced to quickly pick up technical skills, you get exposed to what cutting-edge economics research looks like, etc.). You might do a predoc and decide you’ve already learned enough to dive directly into an EA research or policy job.
This is a good sign that it is a valuable experience.
I’m currently working as a predoc so am happy to chat if you have any questions. Honestly, I doubt RA jobs at EA orgs can achieve that in the foreseeable future, since so much of the value of a predoc comes in the form of a letter from a professor who’s tightly integrated into the network of top academic economists. Unless EA orgs can attract senior researchers with tight connections to faculty at top schools, and clout with those faculty, that won’t happen.
Right, hope we can do that. I suspect that the main issue is giving a credible letter of reference, not so much giving a letter that comes from someone with high academic status. So I’m a bit hopeful.
I have a good set of connections, and I think others at EA orgs do as well. And I hope we are hiring more from this pool going forward. Obviously some EA orgs like GPI are very much academically-connected.
Thanks. My knowledge of what predocs are and what they involve is very limited. I hope to update this post with more information. It might be nice if RA jobs at EA orgs could take on the equivalence if a predoc, but I’m not sure how feasible this is.
To make it clear, I think you mean that it increasingly is a requirement, but not officially.
This is a good sign that it is a valuable experience.
I’m currently working as a predoc so am happy to chat if you have any questions. Honestly, I doubt RA jobs at EA orgs can achieve that in the foreseeable future, since so much of the value of a predoc comes in the form of a letter from a professor who’s tightly integrated into the network of top academic economists. Unless EA orgs can attract senior researchers with tight connections to faculty at top schools, and clout with those faculty, that won’t happen.
Right, hope we can do that. I suspect that the main issue is giving a credible letter of reference, not so much giving a letter that comes from someone with high academic status. So I’m a bit hopeful.
I have a good set of connections, and I think others at EA orgs do as well. And I hope we are hiring more from this pool going forward. Obviously some EA orgs like GPI are very much academically-connected.