About the job

Job summary

The Competition and Markets Authority is undergoing an exciting expansion with the establishment of new offices and a Microeconomics Unit in Darlington. We have Economic Intern opportunities for enthusiastic economics graduates and students to develop their knowledge, technical skills and experience in our growing team.

The Microeconomics Unit leads the CMA’s economic research programme, set out in its Economic Research Strategy. The Unit provides analysis and expertise on the issues of UK competition, consumer rights, supply-side reforms, innovation and productivity. The ambition is for the Unit to become a microeconomic sibling for the Bank of England’s well-established public macroeconomic role.

Job description

You will contribute to economic analysis and research, with the support of more senior economists. This includes identifying key issues, designing and conducting analysis, drawing conclusions and presenting them to colleagues and decision makers.

A demonstrable interest in microeconomics or econometrics will stand you in good stead to work on a variety of research projects in the Microeconomics Unit, which may include:

• Assessing how well competition is working in the UK, through the regular State of Competition report.
• Empirical research into live issues in competition policy and structural reforms aimed at improving UK productivity – such as the nature and extent of employer market power in labour markets.
• Quantifying benefits the CMA generates for consumers in the annual Positive Impact report and looking for ways to improve how we measure the CMA’s impact.
• The CMA’s ongoing programme of ex-post studies into past competition policy interventions.

You will join a committed community of economists and econometricians, working in a collaborative, collegiate atmosphere across our regional offices, with this role being based in Darlington. We are a very diverse team; our economists and econometricians have a range of backgrounds and nationalities. You will work in agile, dedicated teams undertaking quantitative analysis and research on key issues in microeconomics.

Economics Interns are encouraged to take part in the learning and development opportunities available to the wider economics community, which includes training courses, lunchtime seminars and discussion groups on economics topics. We will also support and encourage you to develop your wider skills – including communication, drafting, management skills and project management. This is a good opportunity to gain unique experience, giving Economics Interns useful tools to go on to apply for future permanent positions within the CMA, a route taken by many previous Interns.

In return the CMA is a hugely diverse, rewarding and stimulating place to work – an opportunity to work for the public good and to stretch and develop yourself in doing so. We offer a range of flexible working options (including part-time and compressed hours) and, like many other organisations, operate a hybrid working model with a mix of office and home working. We believe this supports us to deliver our best work while allowing the flexibility to maintain balanced and healthy lives.

To find out more about this opportunity and about working for the CMA, please see below and click on the APPLY button.

Further details on the CMA can be found on the CMA’s YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter pages.

Application closing date: 11.55pm on Monday 5th February 2024.

Person specification

Key responsibilities will include the following:

• Working with Microeconomics Unit colleagues to carry out economic and quantitative analysis as part of research projects. This includes helping to scope the key questions which will inform the direction of the project; gathering appropriate data; and identifying how the analysis contributes to the overall state of knowledge on issues of competition, innovation and productivity.
• Deliver high quality and timely quantitative analysis under the guidance of more senior economists, across several long-term and short-term research projects. Manage own time effectively to ensure analysis is delivered to the agreed timescale, ensuring managers are kept informed of progress, findings and potential risks or limitations.
• Communicate clearly and accurately, both orally and in writing, to both technical and non-technical audiences (economists and non-economists).
• Manage own time effectively to ensure analysis is delivered to the agreed timescale, ensuring managers are kept informed of progress, findings and potential risks or limitations.
• Establish effective working relationships within the research team, with others across the CMA (including senior management) and external stakeholders (including academics and the rest of government).

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £23,199, Competition & Markets Authority contributes £6,263 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV, personal statement and an online application form. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

The selection process will comprise of the sift (CV & application review) and an interview. Arrangements for the interview will be enclosed in the invitation sent when you schedule your interview slot.

Interviews will he held either at a CMA office in Darlington, or, if you are unable to attend in-person, a virtual interview via MS Teams may be made available.

An initial sift based on lead criteria 1 and 2 may be held if a large number of applications are received. If your application then progresses to a full sift, all elements of the essential criteria listed under Person Specification of the role profile will then be considered.

Please note that it is essential that your personal statement is aligned to provide evidence that you have the knowledge and recent practical experience for each of the following selection criteria in your application:

1)  At least a 2:1 undergraduate degree with a strong microeconomics and/or quantitative focus – or be in your penultimate year of your studies and on track to graduate with at least a 2:1 undergraduate degree (Lead Criteria).

2)  Demonstrable interest, knowledge and understanding of microeconomics and the ability to communicate technical economic research or analysis to non-technical audiences (Lead Criteria).

#2 To be answered and scored using the technical economics question within the application.

3)  Ability to design, develop and deliver economic research or analysis to tight deadlines, with experience of gathering, summarising and presenting data to a high standard.

4)  Sound verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to produce documents describing quantitative economic analysis.

5)  Experience or demonstrated ability to establish and manage working relationships and to work in teams to deliver successful outcomes. 

The sifting dates are Tuesday 6th – Wednesday 14th February 2024.

If your application is successful, you will be invited to attend an interview. 
You will be notified via email to log-in to your Civil Service Account to book your interview slot. You will then be sent an email with full details of your arrangements for interview.

Interviews will be held from Friday 23rd / Monday 26th February onward.

As part of the interview process you will be be asked to give a short presentation based on a subject sent to you. This presentation will be at the beginning of the interview. You will then start your Panel interview. The panel interview will be approximately 45 minutes - 1 hour in length where you will be asked questions based on Behaviours, Technical skills and Experience outlined in the role profile.

If you have any inquiries relating to your application, you can email recruitment@cma.gov.uk.

Reasonable adjustments:

In order for a person with disabilities not to be put at a disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process.
For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you are deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.