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Careers in the Research Division

The Division's research economists expand the frontier of economic knowledge by producing high-quality original research in the areas of macroeconomics, money and banking, and applied microeconomics. They contribute to monetary policy discussions by advising Bank president James Bullard on a range of topics, especially in preparation for Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meetings.

Learn more about opportunities for

Working in the Research Division

Economists in the Research Division have a primary responsibility to conduct research. Our economists publish in numerous refereed journals and present at conferences all over the world. Economists develop their own research topics; then, in a collegial environment, they are challenged to move their ideas even further. All the necessary supports are in place to allow them to focus on what they do best—research.

Through the presentation of their ideas, interaction with peers, or exchanges with seasoned scholars, the professional development of our staff economists is necessary and ongoing. Further, our mission clearly states we are to "expand the frontier of economic knowledge around the globe." To those ends, our economists travel throughout the United States and the world.

Economists in the Research Division are supported by professionals with expertise in a wide variety of services. Our Research Automation Group, dedicated to meeting the IT needs of the Research Division manages the hardware and software. The librarians in our Homer Jones Memorial Library facilitate access to numerous economic and business databases, data services, subscriptions to major news publications, and our specialized research collection. Our Publications team of staff editors is available to assist all of our economists in improving their papers, book reviews, letters, conference presentations, and more. Learn more about how we work in this 2021 interview with B. Ravikumar, our Deputy Director of Research.

Beyond the Fed, St. Louis's local universities will help you maintain valuable ties with academia. The St. Louis Fed partners with Saint Louis University, Washington University in St. Louis, and the University of Missouri—St. Louis (as well as regional universities and organizations) to present seminars and organize conferences. Research Division economists collaborate with local faculty on research projects and also serve as visiting professors at these universities from time to time.

St. Louis offers a wide variety of social, cultural, and recreational amenities. Learn more about our home city in this 2019 New York Times article.

Job Opportunities

Business Economist

We, the Economic Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, are looking for you, a Business Economist.

A little about us: The Economic Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is known as one of the top economic research institutions in the world. Shaping the debate on key economic issues through research and active engagement is an essential part of the mission of the Economic Research Division and the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

A little about you: As a Business Economist, you will analyze, prepare, and present economic and financial information to a diverse group of internal and external constituents.  This includes periodic updates on these topics for the Bank’s President.

Junior Research Economists

The Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is seeking junior research economists (those with less than 5 years of post-PhD experience). The primary responsibilities include publishing in leading professional journals, maintaining an active research agenda, and providing analysis on monetary and other policy issues.

Candidates must demonstrate a potential for outstanding scholarly achievement. 

Senior Research Economists

The Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is seeking experienced research economists. The primary responsibilities include publishing in leading professional journals, maintaining an active research agenda, and providing advice on monetary and other policy issues.

A Ph.D. in Economics is required. Candidates must have an outstanding record of scholarly achievement and at least 5 years of post-Ph.D. experience. All applicants should send their curriculum vitae and samples of research to Senior.Recruiting@stls.frb.org. We will begin reviewing applicants immediately and continuously until the positions are filled.

Ph.D. Dissertation Interns

The Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis offers dissertation internships to Ph.D. students in economics. The internship targets students with strong research interest. The purpose of the internship program is to increase the students’ experience and exposure to scholarly research.  The students will interact with the research economists at the Bank as well as visiting Washington University faculty, various other visiting scholars, and other dissertation interns. Click here for more information on our most recent program participants.

Qualifications/Skills

  • Applications are open to Ph.D. students from all Ph.D.-granting colleges and universities (in the U.S. and abroad).
  • Applicants must have passed their qualifying examinations and must be at the dissertation stage of their program.
  • Students that expect to finish their Ph.D. in 2024 are preferred.
  • Internships will be in-person, lasting 3-4 weeks, beginning August 7, 2023. 
  • Students will be expected to make one formal presentation at the Dissertation Interns’ Workshop on August 15-16, 2023.

To apply

We are currently accepting applications for 8 open positions during the summer of 2023.  The application deadline is Monday, March 13, 2023.

To apply, 

1. Submit the online application for the dissertation intern position @ https://econjobmarket.org/posi...

  • curriculum vitae
  • paper or writing sample

2. A letter from the principal academic advisor commenting on the applicant's potential for producing a high-quality dissertation, the importance of the topic to the profession, and the progress that has been made to date

must be uploaded to your econjobmarket submission. 

For questions or concerns, please contact Dissertation.Intern.Recruiting@stls.frb.org

Research Associates 

Research associates (RAs) at the St. Louis Fed are full-time professionals with degrees in economics who work with the Division’s economists on producing and communicating economic research. The St. Louis Fed hires several Research Associates each year. Learn about our current RAs here.

We are not accepting applications for RAs at this time. We will begin accepting applications for Spring/Summer 2020 start dates in August 2019. We will hold interviews in October and November, and extend offers on a rolling basis. To learn more about the position and apply visit https://research.stlouisfed.org/RAjobs

Research associates (RAs) at the St. Louis Fed are full-time professionals with degrees in economics who work with the Division’s economists on producing and communicating economic research. The St. Louis Fed hires several Research Associates each year. We are currently accepting applications for the Summer/Fall 2024 start date. You can apply here and visit https://research.stlouisfed.org/RAjobs/ for a detailed overview of the RA position.

What are the day-to-day activities?  

  • Perform statistical, econometric, computational and analytical research that economists can use for publication in academic journals.
  • Utilize statistical packages such as Stata, SAS, R, Matlab, Fortan, Python and C++.
  • Collect, organize and interpret economic and financial data.
  • Review academic journals, market sources and government reports.
  • Write memoranda or assist economists in developing memoranda and presentations on current economic and financial conditions and policy issues.
  • Attend to additional assignments, including gathering and organizing survey data and anecdotal information and summarizing economic data for the Beige Book.

Qualifications

  • A GPA of 3.5 or above
  • Bachelor’s degree in economics
  • Strong background in mathematics and statistics, courses in:
    • Econometrics
    • Linear algebra
    • Differential equations
    • At least two semesters of calculus
  • Previous economic research experience, such as undergraduate research assistant, research-related internship or independent research project.

For questions or concerns, contact ra.recruiting@stls.frb.org

Research Interns

The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis has a Summer Internship Program that allows you the opportunity to learn about economics in the United States through the perspective of the Federal Reserve System. Internships are available in multiple areas within the Research Division: Economic Education; Research Analysts; Web Development, Historical Online Collection/FRASER and Library; and FRED. 

Summer 2023 positions have been filled.

For questions or concerns, contact: research.internship@stls.frb.org


Research Information Services 

The Research Division employs web developers, data scientists, librarians, project managers, and specialists in a wide variety of roles to support the products in our Research Information Services unit, including FRED, FRASER, and Econ Lowdown. Any open positions in these teams will be advertised on the St. Louis Fed careers site. Learn more about the FRED team's commitment to innovation in this recent podcast episode. 


The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis has a summer internship program that allows you the opportunity to learn about economics in the United States through the perspective of the Federal Reserve System. We begin accepting applications for the following summer in September, hold interviews in October and November, and extend offers on a rolling basis.

About the program

The program consists of:

  • Direct exposure to bank operations
  • Valuable work experience in public service
  • Developmental workshops
  • Q&A sessions with senior leaders
  • Departmental information and networking sessions
  • Mentoring program
  • Structured capstone experience

There are opportunities for undergraduate students who possess strong interpersonal, analytical, communication, and organizational skills with a solid work ethic and strong motivation to learn.

Available positions

Internships are available in multiple areas within the Research Division.

  • Review online learning modules for ease of use and relevance to audience.
  • Work with video closed captioning and website tagging processes.
  • Work with staff to produce economic education content.
  • Assist staff with summer programs and email outreach for educators.
  • Support various website development initiatives.
  • Click here for more information about this group.
  • Expand categorization scheme for our published content: Identify common themes and propose logical connections between our published work and related (FRED) data series and other Research content.
  • Tag published economic content to aid content management.
  • Craft summaries of our published work, including possible mini-abstracts for the newsletter and compilations of various content that analyze common topics/themes.
  • Give feedback on online content related to ease of use, ease of reading, and relevance to audience.
  • Support some steps in the pre-press editorial/production process, especially proofreading.
  • Click here for more information about this group.
  • Research data sources and methodologies of macroeconomic data series.
  • Compile anecdotal information from business contacts in the 8th district.
  • Create charts and tables of economic indicators.
  • Conduct statistical and econometric data analysis in programs such as STATA, Matlab, and R.
  • Write summary reports on methodology and results.
  • Click here for more information about this group.
  • Process a digitization project, including scanning, image editing, and metadata creation.
  • Complete an internal project to add to FRASER’s efficient and effective operations. Potential projects include:
  • Investigate FRASER collection for images to use for visual marketing.
  • Evaluate and make suggestions to FRASER’s existing education page.
  • Identify historical legislation relating to the Federal Reserve, banking, and economics to be added to FRASER.
  • Create a timeline of resources for a topic relevant to FRASER materials.
  • Write short articles for Inside FRASER and FRED Blog highlighting FRASER content.
  • Click here for more information about this group.
  • Develop Python scripts to automate the FRED data and metadata updates.
  • Evaluate existing series against the source website documentation for further metadata clarification.
  • Document metadata changes and process.
  • Learn agile development best practices.
  • Click here for more information about this group.
  • Work with Scrum master in our agile environment.
  • Attend sprint planning sessions.
  • Attend SCRUMs, assist in removing impediments for team.
  • Facilitate backlog grooming sessions.
  • Assist in automation of various processes.
  • Work with SharePoint and Nintex workflow.
  • Support various website development initiatives.
  • Must have a 3.5+ overall GPA
  • Rising college junior or senior
  • Candidate for Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Business (finance or information systems emphasis), or related field.
  • Candidates with a demonstrated interest and strong proficiency in (a) English/journalism/creative writing, (b) computer science, or (c) math/statistics are strongly preferred.
  • All positions require excellent Excel, Word, and Adobe Acrobat skills. Other software requirements are noted within the descriptions above.
  • Interest in monetary policy, macroeconomics, and macroeconomic and banking data is a must.

Interested applicants must email all of the following documents to research.internship@stls.frb.org

Please use the following as the subject line: Summer 2018 Research Intern: Last Name, First Name

For questions or concerns, contact research.internship@stls.frb.org

The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is an Equal Opportunity Employer.