Kingsford Onyina

Hello, welcome to my website!

I'm a Ph.D. candidate in Public Policy Analysis at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, and am currently on the 2026/2027 job market. My research lies at the intersection of social policy, impact evaluation, and applied microeconomics. I study how the design, timing, and implementation of social safety nets shape the well-being of economically vulnerable populations over the life course and across generations. My work spans the mature welfare state of the United States and the evolving social protection systems of sub-Saharan Africa, with the common goal of generating evidence to inform the design of policies that expand economic opportunity.

Research areas

Social Policy Impact Evaluation Applied Microeconomics

Updates

July 2026
My job market paper, Welfare Reform and the Noncognitive Skill Formation of the Next Generation, is now available. Read the paper →
June 2026
New article published in Social Policy and Society (Cambridge University Press): Universal Access, Divided Opinions. Read the article →
Fall 2026
I will be teaching ECON 3112: Econometrics at UNC Charlotte. Syllabus →
QuantBridge
The Fall 2026 Call for Papers is now open for the Applied Quantitative Webinar Series. Graduate students in public policy, applied economics, sociology, and related social science disciplines are invited to present work in progress and receive constructive feedback. Learn more and submit →
Upcoming Presentations
APPAM (Boston, Nov. 5–7), SEA (Houston, Nov. 21–23), and AEA/ASSA (Washington, DC, Jan. 3–5, 2027).

Contact

I welcome conversations about research, collaboration, and related opportunities. Feel free to reach me at konyina@charlotte.edu or connect with me on LinkedIn.