Graduate Assistant in the Evolution of Human Cognition and Behavior

Introduction

UNIL is a leading international teaching and research institution, with over 5,000 employees and 17,000 students split between its Dorigny campus, CHUV and Epalinges. As an employer, UNIL encourages excellence, individual recognition and responsibility.

Presentation

The Department of Organizational Behavior at the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Lausanne provides a stimulating and highly interdisciplinary research environment. We value the diverse areas of expertise among department members, who variously hold Ph.D.s in business, management, psychology, economics, and population biology.  More broadly, the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Lausanne is one of the largest faculties on campus and consists of 10 integrated departments. We publish in top-tier journals in numerous disciplines, including Psychological Review, American Economic Review, Quarterly Journal of Economics, Journal of Management, Journal of Applied Psychology, Academy of Management Journal, Organizational Research Methods, Nature Human Behaviour, PNAS, Science, Nature, and many others.  Department members come from several different countries, and the working language of the department is English.

The position advertised is associated with UNIL’s program in Behavior, Economics, and Evolution (BEE).  BEE is an interdisciplinary MSc program that spans three departments (Ecology and Evolution, Economics, Organizational Behavior) and two faculties (Biology and Medicine, Business and Economics).  The PhD position advertised here is funded by BEE, and thus the successful candidate will work as a teaching assistant for specific BEE courses.

Job information

Expected start date position:

October 1st,  2025 (Note, the PhD programs in Economics and Management begin a few weeks earlier.)

Contract duration:  

The initial contract is one year. The contract is twice renewable for two years, and thus the maximum funding period is five years.

Place of work:

UNIL, Faculty of Business and Economics (HEC), Department of Organizational Behavior, Internef Building, Dorigny, Lausanne

Type of position:

100%

Salary:

According to legal stipulations : link

Supervisor:

Charles Efferson

Your responsibilities

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  50% of the assistant’s time will be dedicated to completion of doctoral studies in either Management or Economics.

  
  


• 
  

  50% of the assistant’s time will be dedicated to providing teaching, administrative, and research support for the supervisor. This specific position will focus on duties related to the interdisciplinary program in Behavior, Economics, and Evolution (BEE) at the University of Lausanne.

  
  

Your qualifications

In order to complete our team, we are looking for someone with the following skills : 

• Master’s in management, organizational behavior, economics, sociology, psychology, evolutionary anthropology, ecology and evolution, population biology, or equivalent


• Fluent in English


• An interest in the interdisciplinary study of human cognition and behavior with evolution as an organizing framework


• Strong quantitative skills with an interest in experimental methods and modeling


• Must be accepted to the doctoral program in either Economics (see below) or Management (see below), and interested candidates must simultaneously apply to one or both of these PhD programs.

What the position offers you

We offer a nice working place in a multicultural, diverse and dynamic academic environment. Opportunities for professional training, a lot of activities and other benefits to discover.

Contact for further information

For any complementary information, please contact by email Charles Efferson (E-Mail schreiben).

Your application

Deadline : January 15th, 2025

Please, send the following documents in pdf format:

• Letter of motivation


• Brief explanation of potential thesis topic (2 pages maximum)


• Curriculum Vitae with references


• Copies of university diplomas and degrees; transcripts (indicating marks/grades achieved)


• MSc thesis or an example research project 

Only applications through this website will be taken into account.  We thank you for your understanding.

Additional information

Information about the Faculty of Business and Economics is available here: https://www.unil.ch/hec/en/home.html

Information on the Department of Organizational Behavior is available here: https://www.unil.ch/ob/en/home.html

Information about the doctoral program in Economics is available here: https://www.unil.ch/hec-phd/en/home/menuinst/programs/phd-in-economics.html

Information on the doctoral program in Management is available here: https://www.unil.ch/hec-phd/en/home/menuinst/programs/phd-in-management.html

Information about Charles Efferson is available at https://pacelab.org

UNIL is committed to:
•    equality, diversity and inclusion within its community;
•    ensuring an open and respectful environment that is conducive to personal development;
•    offering working conditions that facilitate work-life balance;
•    supporting early career researchers.

unil.ch/egalite
unil.ch/familles
unil.ch/graduatecampus

Seeking to promote an equitable representation of men and women among its staff, the University encourages applications from women.