Having grown up in one of the most unequal countries of the world (Chile), I have always been intrigued by and concerned with social inequalities, as both my professional career, and my academic work underline. Broadly speaking, my research is about inequalities of socio-economic standing, and the role of markets, policy, and institutions in producing and perpetuating inequality.Â
My background in Economics (BA and two-year MSc) have equipped me with the skills to undertake advanced quantitative research projects, as evidenced by my extensive work in survey design and administration, as well as my academic research utilising large-scale data analysis. Before coming to Oxford, I worked for the Chilean Government for five years designing and evaluating targeted social policy, which gave me considerable professional experience with policy evaluation. This was later enriched by my MSc in Social Policy at the University of Oxford.
With my research and practical experience, I hope to promote a better understanding of how socio-economic inequalities come to be, and I aim to inform and improve social policy in Chile and elsewhere.
Research
My doctoral research at Nuffield College and the Department of Social Policy is concerned with educational inequalities in Chile, mapping labour-market and educational trajectories of individuals who attended different types of schools. In particular, I am trying to better understand the impact of voucher schools on individual career trajectories. In the past, my research was strongly focussed on income inequality and its intergenerational determinants. One of my main findings was that social background alone cannot explain economic inequalities and that institutions and policy may be highly influential. Thus, I developed a strong interest in the role of educational policy in people’s long-term achievements, including income and labour market outcomes.
