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Student sits at her desk and looks at the laptop. © Aliona Kardash​/​TU Dortmund

19th RGS Doctoral Conference 2026: Impetus for the fiscal policy debate

© Sascha Keweloh​/​RGS Econ
From left to right: Prof. Dr. Almut Balleer (TU Dortmund), Prof. Dr. Jens Südekum (Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf) and Prof. Dr. Lars P. Feld (University of Freiburg).
The 19th RGS Doctoral Conference at Ruhr-Universität Bochum came to a successful close on Thursday, February 19, 2026. Around 100 doctoral students from all over Europe took part in the two-day conference, which was dedicated to fiscal challenges in economic research.

In several sessions, young researchers presented current research findings from various areas of economics. The contributions were commented on and intensively discussed by established academics.

One particular focus was on the current fiscal policy debate in Germany. In their keynotes, Prof. Dr. Jens Südekum (Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf) and Prof. Dr. Lars P. Feld (University of Freiburg) shed light on the German fiscal package 2025 and the future of the debt brake. They discussed the role that evidence-based policy advice can play in controversial fiscal policy decision-making processes

"The conference offered a unique platform to discuss current research methods and promote young academics. The exchange between young researchers and established economists is essential for the further development of the discipline," emphasized Prof. Dr. Christoph Hanck, scientific director of RGS Econ.

The RGS Doctoral Conference takes place annually and has established itself as an important event for young economists in the Ruhr region and beyond. The next conference is planned for 2027.

About RGS Econ:

The Ruhr Graduate School in Economics (RGS Econ) offers a doctoral program in economics that meets the highest international standards. RGS Econ is part of the UA Ruhr Research Academy and combines the expertise of four economics departments in the Ruhr area (UA Ruhr): Ruhr University Bochum, TU Dortmund University and the University of Duisburg-Essen as well as the RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research, one of the leading economic research institutes in Germany.