Faculty Search

Our Department:

The Department of Economics at the University of Utah is located in the College of Social and Behavioral Science and offers degree programs in economics at the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels.  We participate in interdisciplinary programs in Health, Society, and Policy (bachelor’s) and in statistics (master’s), and we provide core courses in master’s programs in public administration, public policy, and health policy administration.  We are among the largest departments at the University, typically graduating about 200 bachelor’s, 15 master’s and 6 to 10 doctoral students per year.

In our research and teaching, we are committed to a pluralistic approach to economics as a social science, including comparison and critical analysis of a variety of theoretical approaches and the generation of applied, policy-relevant research that is informed by this broader inquiry. In the realm of applied research, the department has particular strengths in the areas of health outcomes and health policy, economic development, employment and working conditions, and poverty and inequality. Over the next few years, we plan to hire several new faculty to enhance our ability to focus on three key, interrelated economic and social challenges:  (1) inequality and human well-being; (2) global economic integration, and (3) environmental, social, and economic sustainability.  These topics of inquiry build on existing expertise in our department and also tie to areas of focus in other departments and centers in our college and university.

Our Current Faculty Search:

We seek a scholar whose research bridges two key focus areas of the department: inequality and globalization. Issues of inequality, and of income distribution more generally, have been at the center of academic research and policy discussion for several years.  The causes of rising inequality are multiple and complex, but the connection between inequality and the international economy has moved into the forefront, as recent political shifts (eg, Brexit, the growing controversy about international trade agreements, the “economic nationalist” agenda of the Trump administration) are calling into question the governance over and distribution of gains from international trade.  Thus, the policy relevance of work in this area is likely to grow substantially in the coming years. 

Our faculty are actively engaged in research on inequality and health (Waitzman), gender inequality and economic development (Berik), racial and ethnic inequality in the US (Maloney), and inequality, wages, and growth in a global context (Rada, von Arnim).  A new economist with a focus on connections between inequality and the international economy will help to further invigorate our work in this area and will have the opportunity to connect with a network of researchers in the wider university, including in law, political science, sociology, and psychology, who examine issues related to the international economy and globalization, inequality, and individual and social well-being.