You never know how life will turn out. Just ask Jia Xiang, who once majored in film directing.
“I wrote my script and produced my own little movie!” says Xiang, who grew up in Sichuan Province, China, an area famous for its spicy food and pandas.
Midway through her studies, however, she pivoted and decided to take her career in a totally different direction—changing her major to Economics. After graduating from Peking University in Beijing, China, she attended graduate school for Economics in China, then traveled to the United States to complete her Ph.D. degree from the Department of Economics at Penn State University in Pennsylvania. Her dissertation focused on Empirical Industrial Organization and health economics.
Her short-term goals is to establish more academic collaboration relationships and enrich her research portfolio. Long-term, her goal at IU is to become a well-known expert in analyzing healthcare issues.
Jia Xiang, Assistant Professor
Xiang is thrilled to be joining the Indiana University staff where she will teach G492: Predictive Analytics for Business Strategy.
“IU is home to a fantastic set of economists across the business school, Department of Economics, SPEA, and other schools,” says Xiang. “Within my own department, there are a nice blend of theorists and empirical economists, and I benefit tremendously both from colleagues who share the same research interests and this mix.”
Through the years, Xiang has had some excellent teachers, but she says she’s learned the most not from a person but from an experience—particularly the act of failing.
“I have learned from various failures, knowing the right direction and how to do better next time,” she says.
Xiang, her husband Ray, and their son, Ian, have quickly fallen in love with Bloomington’s gorgeous campus.
“We are really enjoying life here!” she says.
In her free time, Xiang likes to try cooking dishes from other countries. Some favorites include chicken karahi, beef rawon, kottbullar, and cochinita pibil.
“My family is so dedicated to food that we have been known to travel far just for a beloved restaurant!” she says.
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