Research Assistant; PhD position in Health Economics focus Choices in Maternity Care

Doctoral School of Economics and Business Administration

Organisation/Company Babes-Bolyai University Department Doctoral School of Economics and Business Administration Research Field Economics » Health economics Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Final date to receive applications 13 Mar 2026 - 16:00 (Europe/Bucharest) Country Romania Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 40 Offer Starting Date 1 Oct 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Horizon Europe - MSCA Marie Curie Grant Agreement Number  Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

This position is part of HEPARD MSCA European funded doctoral network ( (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below). ). The project is training early‑stage researchers in advanced data analytics, causal inference and machine learning related to health policy topics. Specifically, it is training them to evaluate real‑world policy impacts. Focusing on lifestyle interventions, family support and insurance systems, the project combines economics, public health and data science to produce evidence that reflects Europe’s diversity.

It will help design fairer, more effective health policies for all.

The doctoral training programme offers:

• Core training in health economics, causal inference, micro‑econometrics, health inequalities, epidemiology, and healthcare decision‑making;
• Elective courses on data science, public health, implementation science, and empirical microeconomics;
• Two secondments: one academic (methodological training and collaboration) and one non‑academic (policy experience);
• Network‑wide workshops and conferences bringing together leading researchers, policymakers, and industry partners;
• Regular online meetings with research seminars, course follow‑ups, and journal clubs.
• Career development training, including leadership, teamwork, communication skills, and grant writing.

The research assistant will primarily pursue doctoral studies and conduct independent research within the HEPARD project. He/she will apply state‑of‑the‑art microeconometric methods for causal analysis to address research questions in empirical health economics.

Specifically, the research assistant will examine socio‑economic, migration, and healthcare factors shaping maternity care decisions, leveraging survey data to inform policies for improved maternal health.

• Examine migration’s impact on healthcare workforce distribution by comparing maternity care choices and utilisation between native and migrant women in Romania. Model predictive factors and quantify costs of current and optimised distributions.
• Quantify healthcare costs of birth procedures in Romania (e.g., C‑sections, natural births, length of stay, facility costs), focusing on Romania’s status as having the highest caesarean rate in Europe.
• Develop a model to analyse maternal health trends (e.g., mortality ratio, cause‑specific deaths, risk factors) alongside healthcare access indicators (e.g., antenatal care coverage, skilled birth attendance, C‑section rates).
• Study Tobacco Use During Pregnancy:
  Investigate the patterns of tobacco use among pregnant women, including the prevalence of electronic nicotine delivery systems and the socio‑economic characteristics of women who drop out of smoking cessation trials.

This position includes a three‑month research stay at University of Duisburg‑Essen, Germany.

• The opportunity to work with rich Romanian administrative datasets;
• A robust methodological component
  , including methods from causal inference and time series econometrics at the research frontier;
• A strong policy orientation, contributing evidence‑based recommendations to improve social policy and the organisation of health care delivery to address socio‑economic inequalities;
• An interdisciplinary research environment
  , integrating economics, public health, and data science;
• Participation in network‑wide activities including training in health economics, microeconometrics, policy engagement, and transferable skill.

E‑mail antonia.adam

Skills/Qualif…