Researchers from the Institute of Public Finance participated in various summer schools from June 16 to July 5, where they acquired valuable theoretical and practical knowledge that will benefit their further professional and academic development.

Matea Cvjetković attended the online summer school AI-Aided Systematic Reviewing organized by Utrecht University, where she gained practical experience with the ASReview software. This software is designed for researchers facing the time-consuming process of literature search and analysis, enabling them to transparently and efficiently identify the most relevant sources. Through interactive lectures and practical workshops led by experts in statistics, data science, bibliometrics, and open science, she gained knowledge of active learning, classification models (e.g., Naive Bayes, SVM, neural networks), the importance of applying the PRISMA methodology in systematic literature reviews, as well as the use of FAIR principles in scientific research. The summer school was funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021-2026 – NextGenerationEU.

Sara Čulo attended a summer school organized by the prestigious Barcelona School of Economics, one of the leading European institutions in the field of economics. As part of the program, she took the course Panel Data and Spatial Panels, selected for its wide applicability across various branches of economics. The course included daily lectures and practical exercises, with a special focus on static, dynamic, and spatial panel models. The summer school was funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021-2026 – NextGenerationEU.

Romario Marijanović participated in the summer school for PhD students Panel Data for Causal Research Designs, organized by the Italian Econometric Association (SIdE-IEA). He completed training in advanced methods for panel data analysis, with a focus on causal inference. The program covered both classical and modern approaches, such as Fixed and Random Effects models, Difference-in-Differences, Synthetic Control Methods and their combinations. The workshops included hands-on training in Stata, using both simulated and real data, which further deepened his understanding of the methodology. The summer school was funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021-2026 – NextGenerationEU.

Simona Prijaković participated in the summer school Microeconometrics and Policy Evaluation organized by the Paris School of Economics in Paris. The five-day program focused on contemporary approaches to microeconometrics and public policy impact evaluation, emphasizing methods for obtaining credible causal estimates and the application of machine learning techniques in policy evaluation. She attended modules Methods of Policy Evaluation and Machine Learning for Policy Evaluation, as well as practical workshops using STATA and R. The combination of theoretical and practical components deepened her understanding of empirical techniques for data analysis and policy impact assessment, thereby enhancing her competencies for academic and professional work in econometric analysis and public policy evaluation. The summer school was funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan 2021-2026 – NextGenerationEU.

Such intensive programs of lectures and workshops allow for the rapid acquisition of specific knowledge and skills. In a short period, participants can gain a thorough understanding of current theories, methodologies and tools in their field of research. Through practical exercises, the acquired knowledge is applied to real data or research problems, linking it directly to concrete challenges in scientific work.