PhD
Institute for Work & Employment Research
The mission of the MIT Institute for Work and Employment Research (IWER) is to conduct and disseminate cutting-edge research that improves the lives of workers and their loved ones and that guides managers in crafting a successful and inclusive future of work. IWER is a multidisciplinary community of sociologists, labor economists, and labor and employment scholars doing research and teaching on topics central to work and employment.
It’s a small, highly collaborative, multidisciplinary group whose graduates go on to join the faculty at universities all over the world. IWER PhD students work closely with IWER core faculty yet also benefit from the expertise and resources of the larger Work and Organization Studies group at MIT Sloan, of which IWER is a part. IWER also has affiliated faculty from other groups, departments, and schools at MIT, including the Economic Sociology group and the Departments of Economics, Political Science, Anthropology, and Urban Studies and Planning.
The IWER research group is ideal for applicants interested in a truly interdisciplinary program with deep grounding in sociology, labor relations, and labor economics. This orientation prepares students for doing creative and sophisticated empirical research and also for contributing to policy and practice.