After several years abroad, PhD researcher Šimon Trlifaj returned to Prague with his family and joined CERGE-EI as a visiting student. In this interview, he reflects on the institution’s welcoming research culture, the value of interdisciplinary feedback, and how economic perspectives are shaping his work on public policy, science, and innovation.What brought you to CERGE-EI as a visiting student at this stage of your PhD?

I recently moved back to Prague with my family after several years abroad. I was looking for a welcoming and stimulating academic environment where I could continue working on my research projects, engage with other researchers, and learn. CERGE-EI was a great fit.

What were you hoping to gain from the visit before you arrived, and has the experience matched your expectations so far?

I hoped to have a place where I could work every day, opportunities to attend seminars and lectures relevant to my research, and the chance to engage with an ambitious academic community working in related areas. I have found all of that, so the experience has matched my expectations.

 How does CERGE-EI differ from your home institution in terms of academic culture, feedback, and day-to-day research life?

CEU in Vienna shares many similarities with CERGE-EI. It focuses on graduate-level teaching, although it recently introduced bachelor’s programs, and emphasizes close contact between faculty and students, a U.S.-style approach to education, and excellence in empirical social science research. In many ways, CERGE-EI feels familiar, while also having a stronger disciplinary focus.

What has been the most valuable part of the academic environment at CERGE-EI for you?

The most valuable aspect has been the opportunity to meet researchers whose work is close to mine, either methodologically or substantively. Everyone is very welcoming and open to meeting new people.

Have you found the seminar culture here useful for sharpening your own research questions or methods?

The projects I spend most of my time working on at CERGE-EI are already quite advanced in terms of their methods and research questions. However, I am sure that my next projects will be shaped by my experience here.

I spend most of my days writing, and recent events at CERGE-EI, such as Philippe Aghion’s lecture, have helped me place my work in the context of broader questions in economics, innovation, and growth. It is valuable to gain this kind of perspective on the specific questions and challenges of an individual research project.

 New Perspectives on Innovation and Public Policy

Since your research focuses on how public policy affects science and innovation, has CERGE-EI offered useful economic perspectives that complement your public policy training?

I was pleased to have the opportunity to present my work at a Brown Bag seminar. It was valuable to receive informal feedback from researchers who are clearly highly skilled in research methods and in conceptualizing policy-relevant questions as well-defined, empirically testable hypotheses.

Matěj Bajgar, researcher at CERGE-EI, who also works on innovation economics, presented his ongoing research at another Brown Bag seminar. It was great to meet him and discover our shared interest in the field. We later found out that we were both presenting at the same conference, the Munich Summer Institute.

Have any seminars, lectures, or discussions here given you new ideas about innovation policy, regulation, or evidence-based policymaking?

I was glad to revisit Philippe Aghion’s work in connection with his recent lecture at CERGE-EI. Just this week, I referred to his theory while working on the introduction to an ongoing project on government transparency and follow-on innovation. This is one example of CERGE-EI’s recent influence on my work, and I am sure that influence will continue to resonate in the future.

 Was it easy to integrate into the student community and research life here?

Absolutely. Everyone is very welcoming, and even though I do not attend any courses, there are many opportunities to meet students and researchers, including the regular coffee breaks.

 What has surprised you most about studying or conducting research at CERGE-EI?

I was delighted to see reputable academics taking part in a table tennis tournament alongside sweaty PhD students in a spirit of joyful competition. I hope I will have the chance to participate next time.

 Would you recommend a visit to CERGE-EI to other PhD students working on public policy or innovation-related topics? Why or why not?

I would certainly recommend it to anyone who aspires to conduct high-quality quantitative social science research. Thematic suitability will, of course, depend on the focus of the research project and how closely it matches the expertise of CERGE-EI’s researchers and faculty.