The Institute for Employment Research (IAB), the research arm of the German Federal Employment Agency (BA), is seeking a predoctoral or postdoctoral candidate with a background in statistics, survey methodology, or a related quantitative area. The successful applicant will work in the Statistical Methods Group (KEM) of the IAB located in Nuremberg, Germany. The primary activity of the candidate will be to collaborate with researchers from the IAB and the University of Manchester on the development of record linkage methods for survey and administrative databases. The successful applicant will: 1) evaluate existing methods and new approaches for linking these data sources through empirical and simulation studies, with application to the German National Education Panel Survey (NEPS); 2) identify sources of error in existing linkage methods; and 3) develop correction procedures to minimize distortions caused by linkage errors. The scholar will be directly involved in international presentations and preparation of manuscripts for publication in academic journals.

The contract duration for a PhD student (based on a 50% position) is 36 months. It is possible to increase the working time to 65%, but this would mean the contract duration would be shorter. For a postdoctoral candidate the contract duration would be approx. 30 months (based on a 50% position). Working time up to 100% is possible, but again this would mean the contract duration would be shortened accordingly. The IAB strongly encourages continuing education and the conducted research can be part of a planned Ph.D. thesis for a predoctoral student. Teaching opportunities are possible, but not required for the position.

Criteria for selection include a demonstrated research ability in statistics or an allied scientific discipline, strength in computation and a good knowledge of the R programming language, strong interest in survey methods research, commitment to collaborative research, and excellent verbal and written communication skills in English (German a plus). Full health care coverage is provided according to the German public health care insurance system.

Interested persons should send (1) a letter of application that responds to the research emphases and above criteria, career goals, and academic qualifications; and (2) a CV that lists educational background, relevant work experience, and publications (if any). Questions about the position may be sent to Joseph Sakshaug at joe.sakshaug@manchester.ac.uk or Joerg Drechsler at joerg.drechsler@iab.de.

The deadline for applications is October 5th, 2015. The starting date for the position is November 1st (alternative dates can be negotiated). Application materials should be sent to bewerbungen@iab.de. The official job description and application submission portal (in German) can be found at http://www.iab.de/2928/section.aspx/932. Please reference the following job number in your application: 978/2015

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Joseph Sakshaug, Ph.D.

Senior Lecturer in Social Statistics

School of Social Sciences

University of Manchester

Email: joe.sakshaug@manchester.ac.uk

Web: http://www.manchester.ac.uk/research/joe.sakshaug/