Uta Schönberg received her Master's degree in Economics from the University of Hanover in 1998, and completed her PhD at the University College London in 2004. From 2003 to 2008, she was an Assistant Professor at the University of Rochester. Since July 2008, she is an Assistant Professor at the University College London. Her main research fields are labour economics and microeconometrics, with a special focus on human capital, mobility, gender, and public policy.

She joined IZA as a Research Affiliate in May 2003 and became a Research Fellow in July 2005.