Jenny Williams received her Ph.D. from Rice University in Houston, Texas, in 1997. She joined the University of Melbourne in 2003 and was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2004. In 2008 Jenny was promoted to Associate Professor and to Professor in 2011. Prior to joining the University of Melbourne, she held an appointment at the University of Adelaide and a visiting appointment at University of Illinois at Chicago. Her research interests lie broadly within the area of applied microeconomics with a focus on (risky) behaviour of youth. The common theme in her research is empirically investigating the ways in which decisions and circumstances faced in youth impact on success in later life. She has applied this perspective to study criminal choice, substance use, child health and fertility related decisions of young women.

She joined IZA as a Research Fellow in October 2013.