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Florian Dendorfer, an assistant professor, teaching stream in the department of economics in the Faculty of Arts & Science, has won the from the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland. 

Dendorfer's thesis featured theoretical and empirical work in industrial organization, exploring topics that included how quickly Airbnb guests learn about the qualities of new listings through reviews.

“Pursuing a PhD is a struggle: you start out small and grapple with doubts about whether your work is worthwhile," said Dendorfer, who currently teaches ECO204 (Microeconomic Theory and Applications) and ECO380 (Markets, Competition and Strategy) at U of T. "Many attempts amount to nothing, and a lot of ideas end up in the trash. It’s incredibly rewarding to see all that work come to fruition and to have my thesis recognized by my alma mater with this prize."

“It’s always exciting when junior faculty members distinguish themselves and their research early on in their careers,” said Professor Ettore Damiano, chair of the department of economics. “All of us appreciate confirmation that we attract the world’s best and brightest to the University of Toronto and are very proud to have Florian here at the department.”