Ismael Sanz

Ismael Sanz is a Professor at the Department of Applied Economics I of Universidad Rey Juan Carlos and a Visiting Senior Fellow at the London School of Economics (LSE). His roles include membership in LSE's Women in Social and Public Policy Research Hub. He previously served as Director General of Innovation, Scholarships, and Grants for the Madrid Ministry of Education (2015–2019), Director of the National Institute for Educational Evaluation (2012–2015), and Chair of the OECD PISA Strategic Development Group (2014–2015).

Education: PhD in Applied Economics from Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), awarded the Extraordinary Doctoral Thesis Prize in 2007. Completed research visits at institutions including UC Santa Barbara, Victoria University of Wellington, and Harvard's Kennedy School of Government.

Research focuses on the Economics of Education, Fiscal Policy, and Growth. Key interests include educational evaluation, tax impacts on productivity, and fiscal policy design. Recent work addresses gender gaps in mathematics performance and the role of calendar changes in student outcomes.

Publications span journals like the Economic Journal, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, and Scandinavian Journal of Economics. His research emphasizes policy-relevant analysis, including studies on fiscal adjustments, tax effects on firms, and Olympic medal forecasting.

• Awards: 2007 Extraordinary Doctoral Thesis Prize (UCM)
• Projects: Includes studies on post-pandemic tourism impacts and educational productivity in Latin America.
• Teaching: Courses on Spanish and global economics, applied econometrics, and international economic relations.
• Labs/Teams: Member of the Research Group for the Study and Evaluation of Economic Policies (GIEEPE-URJC) and the Consolidated Teaching Innovation Group Economics (GIDE-URJC).