Stefan Dietrich

PhD Candidate in Economics · Boston University

I work in economic history, with interests in innovation, industrialization, and long-run growth. My research builds new historical micro-data to ask how institutions and professional networks shaped technological change.

My job market paper studies the German Engineering Society and its national network of local chapters. Using the staggered founding of chapters between 1877 and 1918, I show that the professional organisation of practical engineering knowledge raised patenting, and that the effect ran through practising owner-engineers rather than credentialed graduates.

I hold an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics and a BSc from the University of Mannheim. I am on the 2026–27 economics job market and expect to graduate in spring 2027.

You can reach me at sjdietri@bu.edu.