Alyssa B. Cahoy (she/hers)

Photos taken by J. Schully

Hello, and welcome! I am a Ph.D. student in Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania and a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow. I hold a B.A. in social/behavioral sciences and English literature from Rice University, where I graduated with honors.

My substantive areas of interest include Political Sociology; Collective Behavior and Social Movements; Sociology of Education; Asia and Asia America; and Digital Sociology. My current research uses statistical methods to examine whether ethnic studies and gender studies course-taking during college shapes graduating students’ career aspirations, and if so, how.

My research agenda is motivated by three broad theoretical questions:

1. Under what conditions do social identities, such as race, ethnicity, and gender, become politically salient?
2. How does mass media shape how people learn and do politics?
3. What is the role of universities and students in social movements?

For leisure, I enjoy watching psychological thrillers and K-dramas; doing digital photography; and visiting independent bookstores just to “look around” but usually coming out with a stack of books. I live in West Philly with my fiancé and our two large dogs. I am originally from Cagayan de Oro, Philippines, but grew up in rural and urban areas in Texas and Louisiana.