Carmen has an MPhil in Development Studies at the University of Oxford, an MSc in Economics from the University of Nottingham and a BA in Economics from Universidad de Chile.

Before coming to Oxford, she worked as a Researcher and Project Management at the Centre for Policy Analysis on Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Universidad de Chile and as Analyst for the National Innovation Council in Chile. Earlier, she worked for the Chilean Pension Supervisor Institution, focussing on analysis of social security policies.