My name is Floor Fiers and I am a PhD candidate in the Media, Technology and Society (MTS) program at Northwestern University. In that capacity, I am co-advised by Dr. Aaron Shaw and Dr. Eszter Hargittai, and a member of their respective research groups: the Community Data Science Collective and the WebUse Project. Research-wise, I’m interested in inequality and discrimination on the internet, particularly as it pertains to online labor markets.

Originally from the Netherlands, I first came to the US to attend United World College in Montezuma, NM. My archived blog might give you a good sense of my time at the international boarding school. Afterwards, I moved to Canton, NY, to pursue a BA in Sociology from St. Lawrence University. My honors thesis (by now published by Social Media + Society) examined contradictory status-seeking strategies on Instagram. Since 2019, I have been working towards my PhD in Communications. I spent the academic year of 2020-2021 working remotely from Dr. Eszter Hargittai‘s lab Internet & Society at the University of Zurich.

Outside of academia, I love (cold water) swimming, biking and rollerblading as well as I enjoy a bit of non-fiction writing and filmmaking. The latter played a particularly big role in my life when I studied at UWC-USA and St. Lawrence University. Last, but not least, my summers tend to be filled with European music & theater festivals. I love these events so much that I am highly involved in the organization of two small-scale festivals in my home country: Totaalfestival Bladel and Festival Hongerige Wolf.

If you’d like to read more, here is my academic CV and here is my Google Scholar profile. Feel free to email me and if you find yourself on the Northwestern campus, you will probably find me in the Frances Searle Building.

And then, let’s end with some fun facts: Roundabouts are my favorite type of infrastructure and I adore spinach!

~ Floor Fiers