PhD in History and Philosophy of Economics

“Someone said: « The dead writers are remote from us because we know so much more than they did. » Precisely, and they are that which we know.”
Thomas S. Eliot (Tradition and the Individual Talent, 1919).

The Centre Walras-Pareto was founded in 1990 as a Centre for research into the history of economics, with special attention to the Lausanne School of Economics in the continuation of the Chair of Political Economy that was first held by Léon Walras and then by Vilfredo Pareto at the University of Lausanne (until 1890 the Académie de Lausanne). Nowadays in a leading interdisciplinary Centre in the history of economic thought in Europe, our professors are supervising students in the PhD Program in History and Philosophy of Economics.

In terms of research, we are interested in the historical development of economic and political ideas and methods, the institutional and material settings in which these ideas and methods are produced and used, and their social and normative implications and impact. In short, the variety of works done within our PhD program falls around three main issues – interpretation, epistemology, and contextuality.

Individual PhD projects, or PhD that are part of larger projects funded by external sources such as the Swiss National Science Foundation, are pursued under a very close supervision. As a consequence, our PhD program is very selective, and accepts only a few doctoral students to ensure a high quality and tailor-made supervision project.

Doing a PhD at the Centre Walras-Pareto is also a unique opportunity to be part of a stimulating team of scholars devoted to the history of economic thought and philosophy, who share the scarce characteristic of being both physically present at the University of Lausanne, and well inserted in international networks.

If you want to learn more about the PhD in History and Philosophy of Economics, please browse the following pages and contact us for further information.