Oliko Vardishvili is an assistant professor in the Department of Economics at the University of California, Irvine. As a quantitative macroeconomist, she is dedicated to researching questions in fiscal, education and health policies. Vardishvili's work focuses on examining the influence of costly postsecondary education on access to education, productivity, innovation, and income inequality dynamics. She studies policy measures to address the epidemic of chronic conditions in the United States.

Vardishvili completed her doctorate in economics from the European University Institute in Florence, Italy, in 2021, as well as a master's degree in quantitative economics from the University of Konstanz, Germany, and a bachelor's degree in economics from Tbilisi State University, Tbilisi, Georgia.

Vardishvili is an inaugural Fellow of the Richmond Fed’s Center for Advancing Women in Economics.