Liz Lopez is a PhD candidate at the Department of Politics and Public Administration, supervised by Prof. Eva Thomann. She was awarded the prestigious, competitive Landesgraduiertenförderungsgesetz (LGFG) Scholarship at the University of Konstanz. Liz also works part-time for the Working Group for Public Administration.
Liz holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy (MPP) from the Willy Brandt School, Erfurt University, and a Master’s degree in Political Research from the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO-Ecuador).
Research
Liz’s research examines the causal mechanisms linking discretion to corruption. Using Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), she traces the determinants of "face mask scandals"—cases of corruption uncovered in the public procurement of personal protective equipment during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.