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James J. Heckman

University Faculty

James J. Heckman

Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor, Economics

Biography

James J. Heckman is the Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Chicago. He works to understand the origins of inequality, and skill formation, and develops and applies strategies for addressing these issues. Heckman has published over 350 articles and 9 books. Heckman received the Nobel Prize in Economics, the Dan David Prize, and the Chinese Government Friendship Award, among other recognitions. He is Director of the Center for the Economics of Human Development at the University of Chicago. The center investigates the sources of poverty and social immobility and policies to improve human flourishing.

Education and Experience

Education

Princeton University

PhD in economics, 1971
MA in economics, 1968

Colorado College

BA in math, 1965

Experience

University of Chicago

Director, Center for the Economics of Human Development, 2014–present
Professor of Law, University of Chicago Law School, 2011-present
Professor, Irving B. Harris School of Public Policy, 2011-present
Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor, 1995-present
Director, Center for Social Program Evaluation, Harris School of Public Policy, 1991-present
Harris School of Public Policy, Affiliated Faculty, 1990-present
Professor of Economics, 1977-present
Joint Appointment to the Committee on Quantitative Methods in Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences, 2018–2019
Director, Center for the Study of Childhood Development, Harris School of Public Policy, 2009–2014
Affiliated Faculty, Irving B. Harris School of Public Policy, 1990–2011
Director, Economics Research Center, 1998–2006
Henry Schultz Professor, 1985-1995
Associate Professor, 1973-1977 (tenured, 1974)

National Bureau of Economic Research

Associate, 1971-1985; 1987-present
Research Fellow, 1972-1973

Yale University

Alfred Cowles Distinguished Visiting Professor, Cowles Foundation, 2008-2011
A. Whitney Griswold Professor of Economics, 1988-1990
Professor of Statistics, 1990
Yale Law School Lecturer, 1989-1990

University College Dublin

Professor of Science and Society, 2005-present

Jinan University

Chairman of the Consulting Committee of CEHD-IESR Initiative, 2017-present

Institute for Fiscal Studies

International Research Fellow, 2014-present

American Bar Foundation

Senior Research Fellow, 1991-2021

Peking University

Changjiang River Scholar Professor, 2004-2008

University College London

Distinguished Chair of Microeconometrics, 2004-2008

National Opinion Research Center

Research Associate, 1979

RAND Corporation

Consultant, 1975-1976

Columbia University

Associate Professor, 1974-1974
Assistant Professor, 1970-1973

New York University

Adjunct Assistant Professor, 1972

Council of Economic Advisors

Junior Economist Advisors, 1967

Additional Activities

Memberships and Professional Affiliations

  • Scientific Council (briq. 2019)
  • Senior Advisor, China Development Research Foundation (October 2012-present)
  • Director, Human Capital and Economic Opportunity Working Group (2011-present)
  • Research Council, Becker-Friedman Institute for Research in Economics (2011–2017)
  • Director, Center for the Study of Childhood Development, Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago (2009-present)
  • 1997 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth Advisory Panel, NORC (2008-present)
  • International Statistical Institute (2007-present)
  • Science, Technology and Economic Policy Board, National Research Council (2000-present)
  • Director, Center for Social Program Evaluation, Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago (1999-present)
  • Director, Economic Research Center, University of Chicago Department of Economics (1998-present)
  • The Econometric Society
    Past President (2014)
    Executive Committee (2010-2014)
    Council (2000-2006)

Awards and Honors

  • Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Honor of the Memory of Alfred Nobel (2000)
  • Chinese Government Friendship Award, People’s Republic of China (2019)
  • Distinguished Fellow of the American Economic Association (April 2017)
  • Dan David Prize for Combating Poverty, Tel Aviv University (May 2016)
  • James Madison Medal for Distinguished Graduate Alumni, Princeton University (February 2016)
  • Frisch Medal, Econometric Society (2014)
  • Spirit of Erikson Award, Erikson Institute (2014)
  • Distinguished Economist Award, Kentucky Economics Association (October 2012)
  • Distinguished Contributions to Public Policy for Children Award, Society for Research in Child Development (2009)
  • Gold Medal of the President of the Italian Republic, Awarded by the International Scientific Committee of the Pio Manzù Centre (2008)
  • Theodore W. Schultz Award, American Agricultural Economics Association Foundation (January 2007)
  • Dennis J. Aigner Award for Applied Econometrics, Journal of Econometrics (2007)
  • Sun Yefang Economic Science Award (2007)
  • Ulysses Medal, University College Dublin (2006)
  • Jacob Mincer Award for Lifetime Achievement, Society of Labor Economics (2005)
  • Dennis J. Aigner Award for Applied Econometrics, Journal of Econometrics (2005)
  • Medal of Excellence, Centres of Excellence for Children’s Well-Being, Montreal University (May 2004)
  • Statistician of the Year, Chicago Chapter of the American Statistical Association (2002)
  • First Annual Louis T. Benezet Distinguished Alumnus Award, Colorado College (1985)
  • John Bates Clark Medal, American Economics Association (1983)

Honorary Degrees and Professorships

  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Vienna University of Economics and Business, Vienna, Austria (January 2017)
  • Doctor of Social Sciences Honoris Causa, Lignan University, Hong Kong,China (November 2015)
  • Honorary Doctorate of Science (Economics), University College London (September 2013)
  • Foreign Member, Brazilian Academy of Sciences (May 2012)
  • Honorary Professor, Renmin University, P. R. China (June 2010)
  • Honorary Professor, Beijing Normal University, P. R. China (June 2010)
  • Doctor Honoris Causis, Pontifical University, Santiago, Chile (August 2009)
  • Honorary Professor, Harbin Institute of Technology, P. R. China (October 2007)
  • Doctor Honoris Causis, University of Montreal (May 2004)
  • Doctor Honoris Causis, Bard College (May 2004)
  • Honorary Professor, Wuhan University, China (2003)
  • Doctor Honoris Causis, UAEM, Mexico (January 2003)
  • Doctor Honoris Causis, University of Chile (fall 2002)
  • Honorary Doctor of Laws, Colorado College (2001)
  • Honorary Professor, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China (2001)
  • Honorary Member, Latin and Caribbean Economic Association (1999)
  • Honorary Professor, University of Tucuman, October (1998)

Fellowships

  • Charter Fellow, Institute for Nonlinear Dynamical Inference (INDI), Moscow (February 2017)
  • Kenneth Boulding Fellow, American Academy of Political and Social Science (May 2016)
  • Fellow, The Society for Economic Measurement (2013)
  • Corresponding Member, Brazilian Academy of Sciences (2011)
  • Honorary Academician, Academica Sinica, Republic of China/Taiwan (July 2010)
  • Member, National Academy of Education (2010)
  • Lifetime Member, Irish Economic Association (2009)
  • Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science (2009)
  • Fellow, International Statistical Institute (2008)
  • Resident Member, American Philosophical Society (2008)
  • Fellow, Society of Labor Economics (2004)
  • Fellow, Journal of Econometrics (2005)
  • Fellow, American Statistical Association (2001)
  • Elected Member, National Academy of Sciences (1992)
  • Senior Research Fellow, American Bar Foundation (1991)
  • Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1985)
  • Fellow, Econometric Society (1980)

Graduate and Undergraduate Academic Honors

  • Phi Beta Kappa
  • Woodrow Wilson Fellow
  • NDEA Fellow
  • NIH Fellow
  • Harold Willis Dodds Fellow

Service

  • Advisor, Beijing Faculty Steering Committee, University of Chicago Beijing Center( 2019-present)
  • Advisory Panel, University of Chicago China Research Initiative (2019-present)
  • Member, Advisory Committee of the China Institute of Income Distribution Studies, Beijing Normal University (2011-present)
  • Member, Faculty Steering Committee, University of Chicago Beijing Center (2013–2016)
  • Member, Advisory Board and Dean’s Search Committee, School of Public Policy, University of Chicago (1985-1988)
  • Member, National Academy of Sciences Panel on the Status of Black Americans (1985-1988)
  • Member, National Academy of Sciences Panel On Statistical Assessments as Evidence in the Courts (1982-1985)
  • Member, Board of Overseers, Michigan Panel Survey of Income Dynamics (1981-1984)
  • Social Science Council Research Committee on Research Methods for Longitudinal Data (1976-1979; 1981-1982)

Editorial Work

  • Editorial Panel, CPQ Women and Child Health Journal (2018–2019)
  • Associate editor, IZA Journal of Labor Economics (2012-present); Econometrics Reviews (1987-present); Journal of Labor Economics (1982-present); Review of Economics and Statistics (1994-2002); Evaluation Review (1991-1996); Journal of Economic Perspectives (1989-1996); Review of Economic Studies (1982-1985); Journal of Econometrics (1977-1983)
  • Co-editor, Journal of Political Economy, Co-Editor (2011–present); Annual Review in Economics (2007–2011); Journal of Political Economy (1981–1987); Handbook of Econometrics Vol. 5,Vol. 6A, Vol. 6B
  • Advisory Board, Journal of Applied Econometrics (2007-2013)
  • Academic Press Editor of Labor Economics Series (1980–1984)
  • Editor, Journal of Econometrics, Special Issue on Panel Data (1981)
  • Editor, Annals of Economic and Social Measurement, Vol. 5, No. 4 (1976)