Graduated October 2024
Graduated November 2024
Graduated December 2024
Graduated December 2024
“I work on migration economics from a contemporaneous as well as a historical point of view. I enjoy exploring original data sources that can allow us to better understand our past. I also give a lot of importance to scientific integrity and therefore promote open-source and reproducible research.”
Email: etienne.bacher@liser.lu
Previous diplomas: Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Development Economics, Université Clermont Auvergne & CERDI, France
Thesis Title: Cross-border labor mobility, attitudes and
political preferences
Supervisor: Michel Tenikue
Thesis Start Date: 01-10-2020
Thesis Defense: 26-11-2024
Research Area: My research focuses on the social and political aspects of international migration. I explore whether migrants are affected by the political landscape in potential destinations. Most papers I read in my undergraduate studies were about the effect of immigration on voting behavior. It seemed natural to me to explore the effect of those attitudes on future migration flows.
Post-PHD Aspirations: I am looking for a postdoctoral position in the fields of economic history and migration economics. I have a project that combines those two areas by taking advantage of novel historical sources, and I would like to explore it further. Apart from a position in economics, I am also interested in Research Software Engineer (RSE) positions that would allow me to build and teach software in an academic setting.
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Presentations at conferences:
Others:
“As a PhD, I pursue knowledge and innovation, constantly pushing the boundaries of economics. I am passionate about pushing boundaries, solving complex problems and making meaningful contributions to society. I aim to become a leading scholar and practitioner in my field, inspiring others with my research and leaving a lasting impact on the world.”
Email: narcisse.changom@liser.lu
Previous diplomas: Specialized Master in International and Development Economics (UCLouvain and UNamur), Master in Public Finance (CERDI)
Thesis Title: Revisiting the link between skill-biased migration and the geography of development
Supervisor: Frédéric DOCQUIER, Joel MACHADO
Thesis Start Date: 01-11- 2020
Thesis Defense: 21-10-2024
Research Area: I study the distributional effects of migration across space, i.e. between and within countries in the developing context.
Post-PHD Aspirations: My post-graduation aspirations revolve around using my expertise in economics, especially in migration relates issues, to inform policy-making, drive social impact, and contribute to academic research.
Papers published/in progress:
Presentations at conferences:
“Unequal exposure to migration across space and regional development inequality: Evidence from Senegal”
This paper examines how heterogeneous exposure to internal and international migration across space affects economic activity, regional development, and welfare inequality in Senegal. First, it documents how heterogeneous migration is across Senegalese departments, considering both size and destination choice (internal capital regions, internal other regions, international OECD, international neighbors, rest of the world).
Second, it shows that the spatial allocation of labor across space in Senegal is jointly determined by internal and international migration and argues that the failure to account for the two dimensions is likely misleading.
Third, it develops a quantitative spatial development model that features a small open developing economy with multiple regions, a dual labor market (formal and informal sectors), a rural-urban divide, and an education premium.
The model jointly endogenizes migration decisions, education decisions, sectoral location choices, and employment density across regions. Applying the model to a rich and spatially detailed Senegalese data, its shows that regions with negative net out-migration tend to experience per capita income gains, in contrast to regions with positive net out-migration. Moreover, higher exposure to OECD destinations correlates with increased positive externalities through endogenous human capital formation and higher remittances. This suggests that unequal exposure to migration increases inequality at the local level, depending on which destination group the region is most exposed to. At the country level, however, migration reduces income and welfare inequality by 11.6 and 7.3 percent, respectively. These effects stem from reduced spatial misallocation of labor, agglomeration forces, endogenous human capital formation, and remittance flows.
“I am an applied labor economist working on topics related to migration and policy evaluation. I am passionate about (quasi-)experimental research methods and administrative dataset to study questions related to migration and labor markets. “
Email: felix.stips@liser.lu
Previous diplomas: MComm Economics and MA Development Economics from the Universities of Göttingen and Stellenbosch
Webpages: Personal Page / Twitter / Linkedin / Google Scholar
Thesis Title: Essays in the Economics of Human Mobility and Labor Markets
Supervisor: Bertrand Verheyden
Thesis Start Date: 01-11-2020
Thesis Defense: 31-05-2025
Research Area:
The majority of my thesis deals with the labor market effects of immigration, where I focus on heterogeneity and explore new mechanisms of adjustment. One project assess labor market effects in the context of efficiency wage theories, the other zoom in on effects on the unemployed.
What fascinates me about this topic is how fundamental it is to understand the functioning of labor markets, yet how many adjustment mechanisms exist, which make for nuanced and ultimately unclear answers.
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Others:
“I am a Geography PhD candidate intrigued by urban dynamics, complex systems and emergent forms, which has driven my research towards the fields of urban morphology, agent-based modelling, location decision models, and complexity economics. “
Email: lvieiramagalhaes@gmail.com / lucas.vieiramagalhaes@liser.lu
Previous diplomas: MSc Geographic Information Science (Universiteit Twente / The Netherlands)
Webpages: Twitter / Google Scholar
Thesis Title: Essays on retail location modelling
Supervisor: Geoffrey Caruso
Thesis Start Date: 01-11-2020
Thesis Defense: 2025
Research Area: Coming soon
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Presentations at Conferences:
“I study questions on citizenship and discrimination. Particularly, my focus is on understanding how access to citizenship can foster the integration of migrants, and what kind of anti-discrimination policies work. I utilize ML and LLMs, combined with econometric techniques to answer these questions.”
Email: julio.garbers@liser.lu
Previous diplomas: M. Sc. in Economics (University of Heidelberg)
Thesis Title: Immigration and Integration Policies
Supervisor: Christina Gathmann
Thesis Start Date: 01-11-2021
Thesis Defense: 2025-2026
Research Area: My research interests revolve mainly around migration, discrimination, policy evaluation, and labor economics. I am interested in these topics, as it is crucial to better understand which policies can foster societal integration. Both access to citizenship and anti-discrimination policies can play crucial roles in promoting integration.
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Presentations at conferences:
“My research interests lie in Migration, Family, Gender and Development Economics. Passionate about using applied microeconomic methods to explore complex socio-economic dynamics, inform policy and foster inclusive societies.“
Email: Ariane.gordan@uni.lu
Previous diplomas: M.Sc. International Economics and Economic Policy
Thesis Title: Essays in Migration and Family Economics
Supervisor: Arnaud Dupuy
Thesis Start Date: 15-10-2021
Thesis Defense: 2025-2026
Research Area: My research focus is twofold: on the one hand, I study attitudes towards immigration in Luxembourg; on the other hand, I research marriage migration as an economic choice in developing countries. Migration is a pervasive phenomenon affecting societies in varied ways. I enjoy exploring unconventional areas of migration and dissecting mechanisms to explain its broader economic consequences.
Papers published/in progress:
“I’m all about predicting how urban policies would affect daily life. Through my research, I aim to make your commute shorter and your rent lower.“
Email: raian.kudashev@uni.lu
Previous diplomas: MScQEF: University of Luxembourg, MSc in Economics: Higher School of Economics, Russia (double degree)
Webpages:
Thesis Title: Low Taxation Boosts Agglomeration? Evidence from Luxembourg and its Border Regions
Supervisor: Pierre M. Picard
Thesis Start Date: 01-11-2021
Thesis Defense: 2026
Research Area: I employ spatial economic models for structural modeling of urban economic activity. My research investigates the effects of taxation changes and transportation infrastructure improvements on city economic outcomes. I explore urban challenges to improve city life. I’m fascinated by cities as economic hubs and strive to uncover ways to make urban living better.
Papers published/in progress:
Cross-border Mobility, Labor Markets, Commuting, and Housing in Luxembourg and the Greater Region, joint with Dr. Michal Burzynski (LISER) and Prof. Bertrand Verheyden (LISER)
Presentations at conferences:
“I am an applied economist. I am passionate about causal inference methods, using both observational data and primary/experimental data. Thematically, I have a strong interest in the intersections of the economics of migration with the political economy, cultural economics, and the economics of education.”
Email: aleksa.uljarevic@uni.lu
Previous diplomas: M.Sc. in Economics, LMU Munich
Thesis Title: Essays in the economic analysis of human mobility
Supervisor: Michel Beine
Thesis Start Date: 15-10-2021
Thesis Defense: 2026-2027
Research Area: Much of my research has focused on the study of the drivers of attitudes towards internationalization. I examine these issues from the viewpoints of citizens, political parties, and in relation to education policies. I have always been very intrigued by the contrast between the significant economic benefits of migration and the behavioral opposition it faces.
Papers published/in progress:
I am Representative of the Doctoral School in Economics, Finance and Management and TA for the course Econometrics (STATA) (WS 2022/2023, WS 2023/2024, WS 2024/2025) at the University of Luxembourg.
“I use quantitative methods to explore the links between conflicts, natural resources, and migration in developing countries. I particularly enjoy working with spatial data to solve problems in innovative ways.”
Email: gauthier.fontanive@uni.lu
Previous diplomas: M.A. Environmental Sciences and Management from Université Libre de Bruxelles.
Thesis Title: Conflict, natural resources, migration
Supervisor: Skerdilajda ZANAJ
Thesis Start Date: 15-10-2022
Thesis Defense: 2026-2027
Research Area: Within the ACROSS DTU, I am particularly interested in the determinants of forced displacement and how migration flows affect the political economy and development of conflict-affected regions. I have always been passionate about the comparative development of nations and how multiple factors such as natural resource wealth, climate, or cultural diversity can shape development in unexpected ways.
Papers published/in progress:
“I’m pursuing a PhD essentially because I love asking ‘Why?’ more than a three-year-old. In this sense, I am curious to explore the specifics of the broader areas that I work on – labor economics and causal inference. While I enjoy academic research, my interests also lie in evidence-based reportage and data science. On earning my Ph.D. degree, therefore, I am open to considering my career both in academia and outside of it.”
Thesis Title: Immigration policy and migrant assimilation
Supervisor: Konstantinos Tatsiramos
Thesis Start Date: 15-01-2023
Thesis Defense: 2026-2027
Research Area:
My research lies in the intersection of micro-econometric applications on labor market institutions, the economics of immigration and cross-border mobility, and program evaluation.
My topics of choice explore if insurance coverage as a form of socio-economic safety may act as a motivator to raise the tendency to engage in risk-taking behaviors for beneficiaries.
Papers published/in progress:
“Passionate about studying migration from different angles and combining interdisciplinary methods to investigate human migration dynamics and their impacts on socio-economic, as well as on labour market outcomes, ultimately striving to contribute valuable insights to both academia and policymaking through my research.”
Email: aurelie.gillen@uni.lu
Previous diplomas: Master in Economics and Finance (University of Liège – HEC)
Thesis Title: Analysis of cross-border human mobility
Supervisor: Luisito Bertinelli
Thesis Start Date: 15-03-2023
Thesis Defense: 2027
Research Area: I have a strong interest in investigating migration patterns in a historical context, as well as studying the implications of migration related policies on labour market outcomes. Growing up in Luxembourg, where half of the population has a migrant background and nearly half of the working population are cross-border commuters, has sparked my curiosity to learn more about causes and implications of migration or people crossing borders in general.
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Others:
“ I am a behavioural economist who believes experiments can be applied to study any relevant topic, from the transmission of trust through migration to the complex dynamics of intrinsic motivation in the workplace.”
Email: abiliohenrique.berticellidefreitas@liser.lu
Previous diplomas: Master in Behavioural Economics and Decision-Making – University of Montpellier, France (2022)
Thesis Title: The behavioral economics of human mobility
Supervisor: Bertrand Verheyden
Thesis Start Date: 15-11-2022
Thesis Defense: 2026-2027
Research Area: Considering that trust is an important determinant of life satisfaction, economic growth and firm performance, I profit from the specific context provided by Luxembourg to investigate the transmission of social norms from the high-trust Germans to the low-trust French. My contribution is tackling social norms transmission in a controlled experimental setting and using a third country as the “mixing bowl”, as opposed to studies on assimilation into the predominant culture. Through his five-treatment experiment, I expect to identify a convergence in trust between the French and the Germans, with the final equilibrium being slightly higher than Luxembourg’s trust levels. Cultural diversity and internationality conditional on non-segregation are advanced as the main mechanism behind this expected convergence. Rather than being a geolocated research question, I argue that this study has applications and policy implications for most countries in all continents.
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“I currently study the intersection between migration and education. In the past, I have also done some work on monetary and trade economics. My work is mainly done using applied econometrics methods.”
Email: javier.bachiller@uni.lu
Previous diplomas: Master in Economics and Finance (CEMFI), Bachelor in Economics (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid)
Thesis Title: Essays on the economics of migration and education
Supervisor: Michel Beine
Thesis Start Date: 15-10-2022
Thesis Defense: 2026
Research Area: Economics of migration, education and labor economics.
Papers published/in progress:
Presentations at conferences:
Other: