PhD Student Position in Climate Extremes and Migration Research

PhD Student Position in Climate Extremes and Migration Research

100%, Zurich, fixed-term

The Public Policy Group and the Immigration Policy Lab at ETH Zurich invite applications for a PhD student position starting in September 2026 or on a mutually agreed date. You will be part of a collaborative and interdisciplinary research team studying migration and public policy with quantitative social science methods. Your PhD project sits at the nexus of migration research and climate extremes and is embedded in the NCCR CLIM+ research program on Climate Extremes and Society.

Job description

We are looking for a PhD student to contribute to our research program on climate extremes and migration.

• The project aims to provide causal evidence on whether and how climate extremes influence migration, an area where existing evidence remains limited
• One core component of the position will involve combining global migration data with high-resolution climate-extremes data and credible identification strategies to examine how environmental shocks influence different forms of migration, including asylum seeking, refugee movements, and labor migration
• Beyond this project, you will have flexibility to independently develop additional research topics aligned with the mission of IPL and the NCCR CLIM+
• The position is located in the team of Dominik Hangartner at ETH Zurich, with opportunities to collaborate with affiliated researchers across the NCCR CLIM+ program
• In addition to research, you will have small administrative and teaching responsibilities amounting to 10% of your time

Profile

Strong candidates will have most of the following:

• Master’s degree in a social science program with a preference for Political Science, Economics, Sociology, Data Science, Computational Social Science, or in a closely related discipline
• Strong quantitative training and knowledge of statistical methods for causal inference from observational data
• Strong command of a statistical programming language (preferably R), and ability to use modern coding tools effectively
• Experience with geospatial data
• Experience or interest in studying migration, forced displacement, asylum processes, climate change, climate impacts, and related topics
• Ability to collaborate effectively with project team members
• Interest in transdisciplinary collaboration across the social and natural science
• Proficiency and excellent writing skills in English
• Experience of or interest in translating basic research into policy-relevant insights

We offer

• Highly collaborative work environment within a very motivated and supportive team
• Opportunity to develop a network with academics and practitioners
• Career mentoring by experienced researchers
• Salary and pension benefits according to ETH standards
• Research and travel allowance