Yu-Chu Shen is Professor of Economics at the Naval Postgraduate School and Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. She was the Associate Dean of Research at the Graduate School of Defense Management between 2018 and 2021 and the Academic Associate for the Manpower System Analysis curriculum between 2011 and 2018.  

Her research expertise can be summarized in three broad areas in the field of health economics and health policy: (1) analyzing system-level factors that affect access and health outcomes; (2) examining geographic variation and structural racism and discrimination in health care resource allocation; (3) evaluating service-specific risk factors and the built environment that affect mental health readiness in the U.S. military.