PROFESSIONAL OVERVIEW

I am a sociology Ph.D. Candidate at the University of California, Irvine. The primary focus of my research agenda is to explore issues of immigration, race/ethnicity, and law through a variety of research methods, particularly emphasizing interview and ethnographic methodologies, to gain a nuanced understanding of their societal impacts.

My work has been published in the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Critical Sociology, and Border Criminologies, and has received support from several grants and fellowships, including those from the American Sociological Association and the Russell Sage Foundation. My work has also been honored with the Cristina Maria Riegos Student Paper Award by the ASA Latinx Sociology Section, and received additional recognition and support from the Law and Society Association, the Ford Foundation (Honorable Mention), and the Institute for Humane Studies.

My dissertation, “The Transformative Effects of U.S. Immigration Law Post Legal Status Regularization: A Comparative Analysis,” examines how formerly undocumented Mexican and South Korean immigrants experience shifts in their social, emotional, and legal lives after gaining lawful status. Drawing on in-depth interviews and ethnographic observations across California and Texas, I argue that legalization transforms individuals’ relationships with state institutions, their understandings of racial identity and hierarchy, and their everyday social landscapes across different socio-political contexts. My dissertation is advised by Dr. Irene Vega and guided by a committee including Dr. Rocio Rosales, Dr. Julia Lerch, and Dr. Ruben Rumbaut.

Looking ahead, my research will continue to interrogate how racialization, immigrant illegality, and immigration law intersect—within the United States and across borders—to produce unique and stratified forms of exclusion that structure the lives of differently racialized immigrant groups.