In Jan. 2018, I joined @kelly_zvobgo’s newly formed Truth, Justice, Reparations team with @SPECLabUSC. I worked on the project until she began her own lab at @global_wm, and even had the opportunity to research at William & Mary for a summer (1/6)

Kelly’s (all undergraduate) team created a dataset capturing the political impact of truth commissions — from mandate to implementation of recommendations. @kelly_zvobgo released her first article with the data, published in a top IR journal (ISQ): https://academic.oup.com/isq/article-abstract/doi/10.1093/isq/sqaa044/5868934?redirectedFrom=fulltext">https://academic.oup.com/isq/artic... (2/6)

I am so appreciative of labs like @SPECLabUSC + @global_wm that promote collaboration between faculty + undergrads. The research they are producing is unmatched (see above), and yet there are still so few opportunities for undergrad research, especially in social science. (3/6)

I am infinitely grateful for @kelly_zvobgo’s mentorship — she not only introduced me to academic research, but made herself available for career + life advice and directed the entire lab...all while writing her dissertation and cranking out articles. (4/6)

I am further grateful for how this opportunity has shaped my worldview. My Global Health degree doesn’t include human rights courses (???) + only teaches clinical/experimental research — I can’t imagine leaving USC without the perspective that Kelly’s research has given me. (5/6)

Anyway, all of this to say that if you’re considering starting or joining an undergraduate research lab, please do. It’s been the most defining part of my college career. (6/6)