Updated October 4, 2002

Jana KUNICOVA

Public Sector and Governance (ECA)

The World Bank

600 19th St. NW

Washington, DC 20433

Tel. (until 10/31/02): 202 473 1999 (office)

Tel.: 617 359 8460 (cell)

Email:

EDUCATION

1998 – present /

Yale University, Department of Political Science

Ph.D., Political Science (degree expected May 2003)
PhD Field Exams: Political Economy, Mathematical and Econometric Methods, Comparative Politics.
Dissertation: “Political Institutions and Corruption.”
Committee: Susan Rose-Ackerman (Chair), Alastair Smith, José Antonio Cheibub, Fiona McGillivray, and Tasos Kalandrakis.
1996 – 1998 / Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA
B.A. (Summa Cum Laude)in Economics and Politics with highest honors in both fields of study (May 1998).
Honors Thesis: “Between Public and Private: The Role of Township-Village Enterprises in Chinese Gradual Transition to the Market.”
1994-1996 / Comenius University, Bratislava, Slovakia
Prior to transferring to Whitman College, concurrently enrolled in two programs leading to M.Sc. and M.A. degrees: Mathematical Economics (Department of Management) and Sinology (Department of Philosophy).

ADDITIONAL ACADEMIC TRAINING

October 2002 – May 2003 /
Visiting Fellow
Center for Basic Research in Social Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
June-July 2002 / Summer Training Institute: Empirical Implications of Theoretical Models (EITM)
Center for Basic Research in Social Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
May 2000 & May 2002 / 2nd and 4th Annual Graduate Student Retreat
Society for Comparative Research, Yale University (2000), New Haven, CT; and Central European University (2002), Budapest, Hungary.

HONORS AND SCHOLARSHIPS

  • 2002—2003. Yale University Dissertation Fellowship.
  • Summer 2002. John F. Enders Summer Research Grant.
  • Summer 2002. NSF Award # 0215621. Empirical Implications of Theoretical Models, Harvard University. Full support for a month-long program.
  • May 2002. Prize Teaching Fellowship. Yale University and Yale College. Annual university-wide prize awarded to a teaching fellow by nomination from undergraduates and recommendation by the department and supervising faculty. Nominations for at least two courses required. Among the most important honors that Yale bestows upon graduate students.
  • May 2002. Society for Comparative Research Grant for the 4th SCR Graduate Student Retreat in Budapest, Hungary.
  • 1998—present. Full Scholarship (tuition and living expenses). Yale University, Department of Political Science.
  • 1998—2000. Special Dean’s Fellowship. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Yale University. Awarded to an exceptional incoming graduate student in the Department of Political Science.
  • 1998. Phi Beta Kappa.
  • 1998. Maxey Prize for the best Social Science Major. Whitman College.
  • 1996—1998. Full International Student Scholarship (tuition and living expenses). Whitman College.
  • 1996. Travel Grant for Study Overseas. Open Society Institute, Soros Foundation, Bratislava, Slovakia.
PAPERS AND CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
  • “When Are Opposition’s Lips Sealed? Comparative Political Corruption in Democracies.” Presented at the EITM Seminar, CBRSS, Harvard University (July 2002), New York University (September 2002), and Political Economy Workshop, Yale University (October 2002).
  • “Electoral Rules as Constraints on Corruption,” with Susan Rose-Ackerman. Under review in American Journal of Political Science (Revise & Resubmit). Presented at Political Economy Workshop, Yale University (December 2001); Public Choice Meetings, San Diego, CA (March 2002); Midwest Political Science Association Meetings, Chicago, IL (April 2002); Society for Comparative Research 4th Annual Graduate Student Retreat, Budapest, Hungary (May 2002); and World Bank Macro & Growth Seminar Series, Washington, DC (September 2002).
  • “Constitutional Design and Corruption: A Cross-Sectional Study” Under review in Comparative Political Studies. Presented at Society for Comparative Research 2nd Annual Graduate Student Retreat, New Haven, CT (May 2000); Public Choice Meetings, San Diego, CA (March 2002); and World Bank Macro & Growth Seminar Series, Washington, DC (September 2002).
  • “Are Presidential Systems Predisposed to Political Corruption?” Under review in Perspectives on Politics (by invitation from the Editor).
  • “Transitions from Authoritarian Rule in East Central Europe: A Game-Theoretic Analysis.” (2000, Yale University). Presented at the Graduate Colloquium on East European Politics, Yale University (Spring 2002).
  • “Does More Unemployment Mean Less Growth in Transitional Economies?” with Janusz Szyrmer (1999, Harvard Institute for International Development and Yale University).
  • “Capital Mobility, Inequality, and Government Spending Around the World” (1999, Yale University). Presented at the USAID & World Bank joint seminar, Kiev, Ukraine (June 1999).
  • “Constitutional Design and Corruption in Transitional Political Economies: Evidence from Eastern Europe.” (Work in Progress.)
INVITED PRESENTATIONS
  • September 2002. New York University, Department of Politics.
  • September 2002. The World Bank, Development Research Group.
  • March 2002. Public ChoiceMeetings, San Diego, CA. Invited Presenter at two pre-organized panels: Electoral Rules and Policy Making (organized by Matthew Shugart, UCSD) and Determinants of Corruption (organized by Wayne Sandholtz, UC Irvine).
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
  • Member, American Political Science Association.
  • Member, Midwest Political Science Association.
  • Member, Public Choice Society.
  • Discussant. Panel: International Political Economy. Chair: Phil Keefer. Public Choice Meetings, San Diego, CA, March 2002.
  • Discussant. Panel: Constitutional Design and Economic Outcomes. Chair: Peter Kurrild-Klitgaard. Public Choice Meetings, San Diego, CA, March 2002.
  • Advisor, Senior Thesis Project, Yale College. “Comparative Electoral and Party Systems.” Advisee: Jesse Rossman, ’03.
  • Convener, Graduate Colloquium on East European Politics. Yale University, Spring 2002.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Unless otherwise noted, served as Teaching Fellow, Level 4 (2 weekly sections) at Yale College.

  • PLSC 248b. Strategic Thinking and Game Theory. Professor Tasos Kalandrakis. Spring 2002. Nominations for the 2002 Prize Teaching Fellowship (awarded May 2002).
  • PLSC 169a. International Political Economy. Professor Fiona McGillivray. Fall 2001. Nominations for the 2002 Prize Teaching Fellowship (awarded May 2002).
  • PLCS 116b. Introduction to Comparative Politics. Profesor José Antonio Cheibub. Spring 2001.
  • Grader. EP&E Seminar. Capitalism vs. Socialism. Professor John Roemer. Spring 2001. Graded and commented on weekly problem sets and exams.
  • PLSC 369a. East European Politics in Transition. Professor Anna Grzymala-Busse. Fall 2000.

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

Research Assistant to Prof. Susan Rose-Ackerman, May 2000—May 2002.

  • Research Assistant to Prof. Alastair Smith, May 2000—May 2002.
  • Research Assistant to Prof. Fiona McGillivray, September 2001—May 2002.
  • Research Assistant to Prof. Frances Rosenbluth, May 2000—August 2000.
  • Research Assistant to Prof. Pauline Jones-Luong, August 1999—August 2000.
  • Research Assistant to Prof. Geoffrey Garrett, June 1998—December 1998.
  • Research Assistant to Prof. Joseph LaPalombara, July—August 1998.

RELATED NON-ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE

Consultant, The World Bank, Washington, DC

July—October, 2002

  • Europe and Central Asia Region; Public Sector and Governance team. Direct supervisor: Joel Hellman.
  • Managed and analyzed WB and EBRD enterprise survey data on business environment and corruption in transitional economies (BEEPS II).
  • Analyzed IFC survey data on business environment of small and medium enterprises in Uzbekistan.
Consultant, Harvard Institute for International Development; Kiev, Ukraine

December 1999—January 2000

  • Research topic: soft budget constraints of Ukrainian enterprises.
  • Surveyed theoretical literature, developed several proxies for “softness” of the budget constraint, designed and supervised multivariate econometric analysis conducted on a panel of Ukrainian industries.

May—July 1999

  • Research topic: relationship between economic growth and unemployment in transitional economies.
  • Surveyed relevant theoretical literature; assembled a dataset containing a panel of macroeconomic variables for East European countries; conducted econometric estimation of the relationship between unemployment and growth during economic transition.

Abstract Writer, Transparency International

February—September 2000

  • Wrote and catalogued abstracts of academic books and articles related to corruption.

ANCILLARY SKILLS

Computer Skills:

  • Stata 7.0. Advanced data management, econometric analysis, and programming.
  • Limdep: Maximum likelihood estimation.
  • Mathematica: Numeric simulations. Equation solving.
  • EViews, SPSS, SAS: Basic familiarity.
  • Scientific Workplace, MS Office, Adobe Acrobat, Netscape, etc.: Proficient user.

Languages:

  • English, Slovak, Czech, Russian, Ukrainian (native level)
  • German (fluent)
  • Polish (intermediate)
  • Chinese (passive)

DISSERTATION ADVISORS

Professor Susan Rose-Ackerman (Chair)

Department of Political Science and Law School
Yale University
New Haven, CT 06520
Tel.: 203 432 4891
September 24, 2002 to January 13, 2003:
Collegium Budapest
Szentharomsag u.2
Budapest, H-1014
Hungary
Tel: +36 1 224 8300
Email:
Professor José Antonio Cheibub
Department of Political Science
Yale University
New Haven, CT 06520
Tel.: 203 432 7178
Email: / Professor Alastair Smith
Department of Politics
New York University
715 Broadway, 4th Floor
New York, NY
Tel.: 212 992 9678
Email:
Professor Tasos Kalandrakis
Department of Political Science
Yale University
New Haven, CT 06520
Tel.: 203 432 5255
Email:
Professor Fiona McGillivray
Department of Politics
New York University
715 Broadway, 4th Floor
New York, NY
Tel.: 212 998 8479
Email:

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES

Geoffrey Garrett
Vice Provost and Professor of Political Science
UCLA
11343 Bunche Hall
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1487
Tel.: 310 825 4921
Email: / Joel S. Hellman
Lead Specialist
Public Sector and Governance (ECA)
The World Bank
Washington, DC 20433
Tel.: 202 473 1809
Email:

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