Laura Zimmermann holds a joint position as an associate professor in the Department of Economics and the Department of International Affairs (Political Science) at the University of Georgia. Her work focuses on two areas: Studying the economic and political impacts of large government policies in developing countries to generate a holistic picture of how anti-poverty efforts can be made more effective; and understanding how households deal with economic shocks, particularly with respect to job opportunities as well as the allocation of resources to women and girls.

Born and raised in Germany, Laura received her BA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) from the University of Oxford (2008), and her MA (2010) and Ph.D. (2014) in Economics from the University of Michigan.