About this role
We Do Consulting Differently
Apply your doctoral research skills to economic questions arising in litigation and business decisions. BRG’s Economics, Disputes & Investigations practice invites fourth- and fifth-year economics PhD students to join its summer cohort. As a summer intern, you will work alongside economists and experts to apply economic theory and empirical methods to client matters.
BRG brings together academic researchers and practitioners to address complex economic disputes. Engagements include antitrust and competition, intellectual property, and securities and financial markets. You will contribute to project teams and see how economic research informs expert analysis in litigation and consulting.
The summer cohort offers an opportunity to explore economic consulting before the academic job market. You will bring your research perspective to applied problems and develop experience explaining analytical findings to audiences beyond academia.
The cohort is intended for advanced doctoral students interested in applying their training beyond their dissertation research. You will be based in either BRG’s Washington, D.C., or Chicago office, working alongside and learning from senior consultants and economists. Through hands-on engagement work, you will learn how consulting teams develop and test economic arguments.
You should be comfortable working through open-ended research questions and explaining your approach clearly. The role calls for careful empirical work, sound judgment, and collaboration with colleagues from different disciplines. An interest in litigation or economic consulting is important; prior consulting experience is not required.
As a summer intern, you will contribute to engagement workstreams under the guidance of experienced team members. Depending on project needs, your responsibilities may include:
- Applying economic theory and econometric methods to questions arising in client engagements.
- Preparing and analyzing datasets, developing empirical models, and testing the sensitivity of results.
- Translating analytical findings into clear exhibits and written contributions to reports or presentations.
- Working with economists and project staff to refine research approaches and interpret results.
- Reviewing academic literature and industry evidence, documenting methods, and checking analyses for accuracy and reproducibility.
Qualifications
- Fourth- or fifth-year student in an economics PhD program, with advanced doctoral coursework and ongoing dissertation research. Relevant fields include industrial organization, applied microeconomics, econometrics, finance, and labor economics.
- Experience applying econometric methods to research questions, with an understanding of identification and the limitations of empirical evidence.
- Interest in applying economic research to litigation and consulting matters. Relevant internship or work experience is welcome but not required.
- Ability to work independently on a defined research task and collaborate effectively within a project team.
- Experience using artificial intelligence tools to support analytical workflows, with careful validation of outputs and attention to confidentiality.
- Evidence of research ability through dissertation work, working papers, or other research projects; published articles are not required.
- Proficiency in statistical programming, such as Stata, R, or Python, and experience working with research datasets. Familiarity with SQL or Microsoft Excel is useful.
- Strong writing and analytical reasoning, with the ability to explain methods and findings clearly to technical and nontechnical audiences.
To qualify, candidates must expect to complete their PhD by spring 2028. Please submit a résumé, transcripts, one writing sample and a letter of recommendation through the link below by December 31, 2026
Salary Range: $40-$60 per hour.
About BRG
BRG combines world-leading academic credentials with world-tested business expertise and purpose-built emerging technologies. Our culture centers on agility and connectivity which sets us apart and gets you ahead.
At BRG, our professionals include specialist consultants, industry experts, renowned academics, and leading-edge data scientists. Together, they bring a diversity of real-world experience, data, and human and artificial intelligence, to economics, disputes, and investigations; corporate finance; and performance improvement services that address the most complex challenges facing organizations across the globe.
Our unique structure nurtures the interdisciplinary relationships that give us the edge, laying the groundwork for more informed insights and more original, incisive thinking. When paired with our global reach and resources, our diverse perspectives and technical capabilities make us uniquely capable to address our clients’ challenges. We get results because we know how to apply our thinking to your world.
At BRG, we don’t just show you what’s possible. We’re built to help you make it happen.
BRG is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our hiring practices provide equal opportunity for employment without regard to race, religion, color, sex, gender, national origin, age, United States military veteran status, ancestry, sexual orientation, marital status, family structure, medical condition including genetic characteristics or information, veteran status, or mental or physical disability so long as the essential functions of the job can be performed with or without reasonable accommodation, or any other protected category under federal, state, or local law.