School of Social and Political Science

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Why did you choose to study your programme? And why Edinburgh?

Well…Edinburgh had a digital sociology programme – not many schools offered this programme. The programme was only a few years old; it was a new and unique field.  

Digital sociology was the perfect marriage of my interests. I studied sociology for my undergraduate degree, specifically I was interested in digital media and media theory. I was excited to continue learning in this area – though what I ended up actually studying at Edinburgh was completely different!

I really wanted to experience living in Edinburgh. Both my aunt and uncle are professors at the University, and I was fortunate to visit after I graduated from high school. I was captivated by the city and couldn’t wait to come back and spend more time there. It was perfect that the University offered the Digital Sociology MSc programme. 

How did you get to where you are?

My most recent role was at a research and strategy consulting firm called Material, specialising in qualitative research. Companies hire Material to design research projects around different objectives. This could be qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods or social analytics. Material executes the research, analyses the findings and carries out strategic consulting based off the findings. On a day-to-day basis I would moderate one-on-one, in-depth interviews, regularly travelling across the US to conduct research in the home. I also conducted research intercepts – essentially walking up to people and talking to them. I just finished up a project conducting intercepts in an iconic National Park in the US. 

Something that I didn’t expect to immerse myself in at Edinburgh was computational text analysis – which is qualitative research at scale. I fell in love with this methodology and was keen to apply this in my role at Material. We had a large project where the amount of qualitative data was huge. I proposed to incorporate the computational text analysis methods I’d learned at Edinburgh to the data set and it was openly embraced. There was a lot of excitement from clients and the company, it felt like we were innovating a methodology. It felt empowering to apply a skill I had learned and fell in love with during my masters programme. 

I’ve recently started my PhD in Sociology at The Graduate Center at City University of New York (CUNY). I’m thrilled to be part of the same PhD programme that my undergraduate mentor graduated from and that Professor Karen Gregory, director of the Digital Sociology MSc programme, also attended. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for my time at Edinburgh. When writing my masters dissertation, I would leave the library feeling more energised than when I went in. I loved talking to friends about what I had learned, and what I was writing about. This energy really motivated and inspired me to apply to the PhD programme at CUNY.

How have you used the knowledge and skills gained from your time at Edinburgh in your career journey? What did you gain from your time at the University?

I really cannot understate how excellent my educational experience was at Edinburgh. I left Edinburgh with a set of hard skills that I would have never gotten at any other point in my educational journey, such as computational text analysis. Sociological research is being massively transformed by AI, and computational text analysis is an AI methodology. There is a lot of pressure in the research industry to keep up. Having this skillset gave me an edge and the ability to stay ahead of the curve. And it was amazing to be taught those skills by innovators in this field, like Professor Christopher Barrie. 

For my dissertation, I applied computational text analysis methods to analyse and surface themes in discussions around commercial surrogacy on ‘Mumsnet’. This research area has been a consistent thread throughout my academic journey, from my undergraduate and masters thesis to my PhD research proposal. I am excited to keep pulling on this thread. 

What 3 words describe your time studying at the School of Social and Political Science?

Affirm, expand, unlock.

What is your favourite memory from your time studying at the University of Edinburgh (or SPS)?

While I enjoyed so many moments throughout my time at Edinburgh, my favourite memory happened a year after graduating, when I returned for a visit. I met with Professor Karen Gregory, one of the then-directors of the programme, in her office on an afternoon in November. I was there to shyly ask her opinion on applying to PhD programs. (I was especially curious to hear her take on the program at CUNY, where she’d studied.) I told her how much I’d enjoyed writing my dissertation, and how endlessly fascinated I was by my research topic. I think she saw through my sheepishness, because she told me quite directly, “You have a career in this, if you want it.” We’ll see how it shakes out, but those words gave me the confidence I needed to put together a PhD application. It’s easy to feel like an imposter in graduate school. I needed to hear those words, and I don’t think I’ll ever forget them!

What advice would you give yourself if you were just starting your academic journey?

If there is a thread you want to pull on – then do it. Don’t be self-conscious or unsure about pulling on it with all your might. Don’t be uncertain or shy about exploring the areas that fascinate you. 

Written 2025