Charlie Rafkin

Charlie Rafkin is an upcoming Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of British Columbia, starting January 2026. He completed his PhD in Economics at MIT (2024) and held postdoctoral positions at Berkeley (2024–2025) and Stanford (2025). His research focuses on behavioral and public economics, exploring topics like transfer program design, intergenerational mobility, and policy impacts on marginalized groups. Key contributions include analyzing self-targeting mechanisms in welfare programs, social preferences in landlord-tenant bargaining, and the welfare effects of SNAP eligibility expansions.

Education: PhD in Economics, MIT (2024); Postdoctoral fellowships at UC Berkeley and Stanford University.

Research Interests: Behavioral economics, public policy, social welfare, legal aid, and intergenerational mobility. He employs experimental methods and field data to study policy design, welfare outcomes, and societal preferences. His work bridges theoretical models with empirical evidence, addressing topics like eviction dynamics, health care rights, and mortality trends among disadvantaged populations.

Publications and Awards: Published in leading journals like the American Economic Journal and the Journal of Public Economics. Received the Innovative Policy Research Award (ADB/IEA) for work on Indian mobility and the CESifo Distinguished Affiliate Award in Behavioral Economics. His research on legal assistance for evictions and SNAP eligibility has informed policy debates on welfare targeting and program efficacy.

Labs/Teams: Collaborates with institutions like the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), where he developed the scfses Stata tool for analyzing Survey of Consumer Finances data. Active in interdisciplinary teams studying behavioral public finance and policy evaluation.