Current PhD Students

Ugne Sliciute

1st-year PhD student at the department of Economics, Econometrics, and Finance at the University of Groningen.
Interests: Household Economics, Health Economics, Labour Economics, Public Economics

Gerjan Zwiers

1st-year PhD student at the department of Economics, Econometrics, and Finance at the University of Groningen.
Interests: Household Economics

Former PhD Students

Laura Jansen

I am a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Economics at Leiden University. In June 2026, I will defend my PhD thesis at the University of Groningen. 
I am interested in labor, health, and public economics, both theoretically and empirically. My PhD project focused on optimal disability insurance, with an emphasis on the role that employers can play in retaining workers. Currently, I am working on a project that examines (healthy) old-age employment and the role of employers. 

Homepage: sites.google.com/view/laurajansen/about-me

Jeroen van der Vaart

I am an actuary and applied microeconometrician who works on the economics of aging, particularly the intersection of health, saving behavior, and social insurance.
Current position: Business Actuary - Pension & Life Division at Achmea.

Homepage: sites.google.com/rug.nl/jeroenvandervaart/home

Ziwei Rao

I am a postdoctoral researcher at University of Helsinki working with Mikko Myrskyla within the FLUX consortium. Before that, I was a PhD candidate in Economics between 2018 and 2022 at the University of Groningen. My research interests include applied microeconomics, labor economics, and demographic and family studies.


Homepage: ziweirao.github.io/