Hello! Welcome to my website.

I am Caíque Melo, PhD Candidate in Social and Political Sciences at Bocconi University, PhD Research Fellow at Clean/BAFFI Research Center, and Research Affiliate at GAPPE. 

My research agenda examines how political institutions, strategies, and representation shape the distribution of resources and the functioning of public organizations. Specifically, I study how rules governing campaign finance and political competition influence the ways politicians build and sustain support, and how representation reshapes organizational leadership. Methodologically, I combine administrative microdata with quasi-experimental designs to provide causal evidence on the personnel foundations of state capacity. 

Beyond academia, I have collaborated on policy evaluation with institutions including the United Nations, the World Bank, OECD, the International Labour Organization, and Brazil’s Ministry of Education, among others.

You can find my CV here, my research statement here, and my Google Scholar profile here. I also have a (shamefully) neglected Twitter account here.

I will be on the 2025-2026 Job Market.

Feel free to reach out if you would like to discuss research or policy work.