Stefan J. Dietrich
PhD Candidate in Economics · Boston University
Fields: Applied Microeconomics · Innovation · Economic History
I am an applied microeconomist studying innovation, firms, and long-run growth, with a particular interest in economic history. My research builds new microdata to ask how institutions and professional networks shape technological change and regional development.
Job Market Paper
Engineering Germany’s Industrial Success
Professional Societies and the Social Dynamics of Innovation
I ask whether organizing practical knowledge speeds up industrialization. During Germany’s industrial revolution, regions where engineers organized into local professional societies pulled ahead in innovation — and the advantage compounded, leaving them more industrialized well into the twentieth century.
I hold an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics and a BSc from the University of Mannheim. I am on the 2026–27 economics job market and expect to graduate in spring 2027.