SIMEON CHARAKA NICHTER
210 Barrows Hall
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720-1950
Tel: (520) 829-1123
nichter [at] berkeley.edu
EDUCATION
University of California, Berkeley
Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Political Science
M.A. in Political Science (2006)
Fields: Comparative Politics; Latin America; Methodology
Distinction, Comprehensive Examination in Comparative Politics (2006)
HARVARD UNIVERSITY, John F. Kennedy School of Government
M.P.A. in International Development (2004)
PhD-level coursework in Microeconomics, Macroeconomics and Econometrics
CARLETON COLLEGE
B.A. in Economics (1998)
Phi Beta Kappa, Magna Cum Laude, and Dean's List
Studied abroad in China (political economy) and Russia (culture and language)
PUBLICATIONS
Peer-Reviewed Publications:
“Occupational Choices: Economic Determinants of Land Invasions” (with F. Daniel Hidalgo, Suresh Naidu and Neal Richardson). Review of Economics and Statistics, Forthcoming.
“Economic Reforms and Democracy: Evidence of a J-Curve in Latin America" (with Jordan Gans-Morse). Comparative Political Studies 41 (October 2008): 1398–1426.
“Vote Buying or Turnout Buying? Machine Politics and the Secret Ballot.”
American Political Science Review 102 (February 2008): 19–31.
Manuscripts Under Review:
“Small Firm Growth in Developing Countries” (with Lara Goldmark). Invited to Revise and Resubmit, World Development.
Other Publications:
“Understanding Micro and Small Enterprise Growth” (with Lara Goldmark). U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), November 2005.
“Understanding Microfinance in the Brazilian Context” (with Lara Goldmark and Anita Fiori). National Economic and Social Development Bank of Brazil (BNDES) and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), July 2002.
“Entendendo as Microfinanças no Contexto Brasileiro” (with Lara Goldmark and Anita Fiori). National Economic and Social Development Bank of Brazil (BNDES) and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), July 2002.
Masters Theses:
“Conceptualizing Vote Buying.” Thesis for M.A. in Political Science, University of California, Berkeley.
“Enhancing Productive Opportunities in Rural Pernambuco: Community-Driven Development in Brazil.” Thesis for M.P.A. in International Development, Harvard University (KSG), February 2004.
Awarded Carballo Prize for best paper on poverty at Harvard’s Kennedy School.
FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS
National Science Foundation, Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant (2008)
National Science Foundation, Graduate Research Fellowship (2005, 3-Year Fellowship)
U.S. Department of Education, Jacob K. Javits Fellowship (2005, 4-Year Fellowship, Declined 2 Years)
National Science Foundation Grant, Empirical Implications of Theoretical Models (EITM) Summer Institute (2005)
UC Berkeley, Power Fellowship (2004)
UC Berkeley, Graduate Fellowship (2004)
American Political Science Association, Travel Grant (2004)
Manuel Carballo Prize (2004) – Awarded annually for best paper on poverty at Harvard’s Kennedy School
Master’s Thesis Award (2004) – Awarded by Harvard President for one of best MA theses on development
International Summit of Achievement Delegate (2004) – Selected by Harvard deans and faculty
Harvard University, Center for International Development, Research Fellowship (2003)
Harvard Merit Scholarship (2002, 2-Year Partial Scholarship)
Certificate of Advanced Study in Foreign Language and Area Studies; Russian, Carleton College (1998)
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Mentor, Undergraduate-Graduate Mentorship Program, Fall 2004 and Spring 2005. UC Berkeley.
Course Assistant, “Advanced Quantitative Methods II: Econometrics,” Spring 2004.
Professor Robert Jensen, Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government.
Taught special sections, held office hours and graded exams for graduate-level course.
Course Assistant, “Economic Development:Theory, Policy and Evidence,” Fall 2003.
Professors Dani Rodrik and Mark Rosenzweig, Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government. Taught special sections, held office hours and graded exams for graduate-level course.
Tutor, Math Skills Center and Economics Skills Center, Fall 1997 and Spring 1998. Carleton College.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2004-2005
UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (USAID)
Consultant
Published research on micro and small enterprises in
developing countries
summer 2003
WORLD BANK (Brasilia and Recife, Brazil)
Graduate Researcher
Analyzed private sector development in rural Brazil
Conducted econometric analyses to examine project performance
Interviewed 30 rural communities and 20 officials (in Portuguese)
spring 2002
DEVELOPMENT ALTERNATIVES, INC (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
Consultant
Worked on microfinance project of the National Development Bank of Brazil (BNDES) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
Interviewed 60 entrepreneurs and 15 loan officers (in Portuguese)
Coauthored article on microfinance in Brazil
1998-2001
MONITOR GROUP (U.S., India and Greece)
Consultant
Worked for global strategy consulting firm advising large corporations
Collaborated to develop strategies on 11 client projects
Gained international managerial experience in Mumbai, India and Athens, Greece
summer 1996
3M WORLDWIDE (St. Paul, MN)
Intern
Worked on environmental affairs in 3M headquarters
ACADEMIC PRESENTATIONS
Berkeley-Stanford Comparative Politics Conference, Stanford University, April 2006.
Latin American Studies Association meetings, Puerto Rico, March 2006.
American Political Science Association meetings (poster), Washington, D.C., September 2005.
Harvard University, Selected to present MA thesis to 200 students and faculty, May 2004.
ADDITIONAL EDUCATION
Institute for Qualitative and Multi-Method Research (IQMR).
Arizona State University (January 2007).
A project of the Consortium on Qualitative Research Methods designed to improve qualitative and multi-method research in political science.
Empirical Implications of Theoretical Models (EITM).
University of California, Berkeley (June-July 2005).
An NSF-funded project designed to improve the integration of theoretical models and empirical research in political science.
LANGUAGES
English (Native)
Portuguese (Fluent)
Spanish (Fluent)
Russian (Intermediate)