Social Sciences (Faculty & Staff)

Economics Professor Emi Nakamura talks about monetary policy, hard work and passion for the profession

April 8, 2024
By Emily Yang

Focusing her research on the effects of monetary and fiscal policy on the economy, Chancellor's Professor of Economics Emi Nakamura brings her distinguished academic background to UC Berkeley’s Department of Economics.

Nakamura is the recipient of the John Bates Clark Medal; co-vice chair of the Economics Department; previous co-editor of the American Economic Review; a member of the American...

Linguistics Professor Peter Jenks wins the 2024 UC Berkeley Distinguished Teaching Award

April 17, 2024
Emily Yang

Linguistics Professor Peter Jenks was named a recipient of the 2024 Distinguished Teaching Award (DTA), UC Berkeley’s highest honor. DTA recognizes faculty who consistently do an outstanding job teaching and inspiring their students. These faculty members not only make learning exciting but also help their students and fellow faculty see how classroom lessons connect to the real world. Award recipients receive a financial prize, recognition from the...

History Professor John Connelly wins 2024 Guggenheim Fellowship

April 15, 2024
By Kenny Ma

UC Berkeley History Professor John Connelly has been awarded a prestigious 2024 Guggenheim Fellowship. Connelly, who serves as the Sidney Hellman Ehrman Professor of European History, has made significant contributions to the field of European history through his extensive research and publications.

He currently directs Berkeley's Institute for East European, Eurasian, and Slavic Studies. Connelly, who holds a bachelor's degree from Georgetown University and a Ph.D. from Harvard University, published works that include “Captive University: The...

Ethnic Studies Continuing Lecturer Victoria Robinson wins the 2024 UC Berkeley Distinguished Teaching Award

April 15, 2024
Emily Yang

Ethnic Studies Continuing Lecturer and American Cultures Program Director Victoria Robinson was named a recipient of the 2024 Distinguished Teaching Award (DTA), UC Berkeley’s highest honor. The DTA recognizes faculty who consistently do an outstanding job teaching and inspiring their students. These faculty members not only make learning exciting but also help their students and fellow faculty see how classroom lessons connect to the real world. Award recipients...

Berkeley Sociology paper shows the difficulty in landing a job for college grads with criminal records

April 11, 2024
By Lilah Klein

In today’s job market, a college degree is often seen as a pathway to success, promising greater opportunities and higher chances of employment. But for individuals with a criminal record, the reality can be starkly different.

UC Berkeley Sociology alumnus Michael Cerda-Jara explores the challenges formerly incarcerated individuals face while seeking employment in a study published in Sociological Science titled "Criminal Record...

Rich Lyons, longtime campus business, innovation leader, will be UC Berkeley's next chancellor

April 10, 2024
Jason Pohl, Berkeley News

Rich Lyons, an established economist, former dean of the Haas School of Business and the campus's current leader for innovation and entrepreneurship, will become the next chancellor at the University of California, Berkeley, the UC Board of Regents announced today (Wednesday, April 10).

The board's unanimous confirmation makes Lyons, 63, the first UC Berkeley undergraduate alumnus since 1930 to become...

https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/04/10/rich-lyons-longtime-campus-business-innovat…

U.S. News Grad Rankings: Berkeley Social Sciences departments among America's best

April 10, 2024
By Berkeley Social Sciences staff

U.S News Grad Rankings shield

The 2024 U.S. News & World Report graduate rankings are out. Several departments in Berkeley Social Sciences continue to top the list. Sociology ranked No. 1, Psychology No. 1, History No. 1, Economics No. 4 and Political Science No. 4.

"I'm very proud that University of California, Berkeley Social Sciences once again has some of our nation's best...

https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/university-of-california-berkeley-1…

Berkeley economists among a group of researchers that found bias against Black job applicants

April 9, 2024
By Claire Cain Miller and Josh Katz from The New York Times
What Researchers Discovered When They Sent 80,000 Fake Résumés to U.S. Jobs

Some companies discriminated against Black applicants much more than others, and H.R. practices made a big difference.

A group of economists recently performed an experiment on around 100 of the largest companies in the country, applying for jobs using made-up résumés with equivalent qualifications but different personal characteristics. They changed applicants’ names to suggest that they were white or Black, and male or female — Latisha or Amy, Lamar or...

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/08/upshot/employment-discrimination-fake-resumes…

Berkeley Social Sciences honors Dr. Harry Edwards with Inaugural Social Science for the Public Good Award

February 27, 2024
By Berkeley Social Sciences staff

Social Sciences award

Berkeley Social Sciences recently honored Sociology Professor Emeritus Dr. Harry Edwards with its inaugural Social Science for the Public Good Award. The award recognizes Edwards' many contributions to better society such as creating the field of sociology of sports, advancing social justice, and mentoring and inspiring his...

From UC Berkeley to rural India, an anthropologist works to expand library access

March 4, 2024
By Kenny Ma and Lilah Klein

Headshot of woman with long dark hair braided over one shoulder. Wearing black lace shirt under a floral sari. In her many years of fieldwork in rural central India, UC Berkeley Anthropology Professor Aarti Sethi pondered what could make a real difference in the lives of people there. She realized the answer was knowledge: a public library system, an asset scarcely available in the region, which would open doors to literacy...

https://news.berkeley.edu/2024/03/04/from-uc-berkeley-to-rural-india-an-anthropo…