Introduction

Over the last decades, central bank staff representing more than one hundred and fifty monetary authorities have participated in the Study Center’s Central Bankers Courses. The courses cover topics of first-order importance to central banks, emphasizing both theory and applications in the areas of macroeconomics, monetary economics, financial economics, and international finance. They target two groups: Central bank economists with a PhD in economics who intend to conduct frontier research; and central bank middle managers with a background in economics or a related field and the ambition to advance their understanding of economics.

Program

A typical course day includes classroom lectures of three hours per day as well as exercise review sessions. Participants collaborate in small groups, benefiting from the Center’s excellent infrastructure and the diverse backgrounds of their peers. Visits to the Swiss National Bank or the Bank for International Settlements as well as weekend excursions to nearby tourist attractions complement the academic program.

Funding and Organization

The courses are free of charge. The Center covers the cost of a single room with full board and the cost of the organized excursions. For information about the hotel services, see the website of the Study Center’s hotel. The restaurant offers meat, fish, and vegetarian meals and caters to special diets.

The monetary authority sponsoring the participant covers travel expenses to and from Switzerland (Bern). It assures that the participant holds insurance which fully covers medical and hospital expenses in Switzerland in case of illness or accident.

Participants are responsible to obtain visas for their entire trip including transit destinations. No accompanying persons are admitted.

Admission

The Study Center invites monetary authorities to nominate at most one candidate per course. As space is limited, the Center cannot admit all qualified nominees. Repeat nominations are welcome but nominees who previously attended a Central Bankers Course cannot be considered again.

Nominees must be fluent in English and proficient in mathematics at the high school level at a minimum. They must hold a BA, MA, or PhD degree in economics or a related field, depending on the type of course. A nominee’s job responsibilities should relate to the course topic.