“While the job market is stressful, it is also an opportunity to discuss your research”

jul. 07, 2022

Congratulations Katarina Warg who recently accepted a position as Assistant Professor in Finance (Tenure Track) at the Copenhagen Business School (CBS) after being on the job market during the 2021 – 2022 season.

Katarina Warg is a PhD candidate at the Department of Finance at Stockholm School of Economics. Her research focuses on entrepreneurial finance and the financing of innovation. Her job market paper, “The Acquisition Option and Startup Innovations”, demonstrates that as the availability of venture capital increases, startups' catering incentives decrease. The study suggests that the availability of external financing is key to understanding startup firms' innovation incentives and, ultimately, innovation output.

What will you remember from your time at the Swedish House of Finance?

I have been a student (BSc, MSc, and now PhD) at SSE for more than a third of my life. There are a lot of experiences and knowledge that I will remember from these years. Since the first finance course I took ten years ago, the Swedish House of Finance’s faculty has been integral in my becoming an economist, and they have trained me to be the researcher I am today.

What do you look forward to in your new position?

I look forward to working and interacting with my new colleagues and continuing to do research. It will also be fun to experience the academic environment in a different department. I visited CBS in May this year and met some of my future colleagues in person, which I had not been able to do during the job market due to the pandemic. It was a great experience, and I look forward to my start date!

How was the job market experience?

The job market is a very intense experience, but I also enjoyed it a lot. You meet and talk to so many great researchers and receive so much great input on your work. I felt very excited about continuing my work, albeit very tired after it was over.

If you would advise future job market candidates, what would you tell them?

To future job market candidates, I would emphasize that while the job market is stressful, it is also very stimulating and an opportunity to discuss your research and the work of the people you meet. I preferred thinking of the interviews and flyouts as a way to engage with others regarding my own and their research, as the stress of the process itself otherwise can take over the experience. I received much support from people at the Swedish House of Finance during my Ph.D. and the job market. Future job market candidates should not hesitate to reach out and ask for input and help.