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Students and Alumni on the Market

Jennifer Kerner

Area of Study: 

Comparative Politics, International Relations

Bio: 

Jennifer Kerner is a PhD candidate with concentrations in international relations and comparative politics. She is interested in individual- and community-level questions of conflict, peace-building, political violence, and alliance-making among and between non-state actors. Specifically, she focuses on restorative and transitional justice and answering questions related to the demobilization, disarmament, and reintegration (DDR) of combatants and the communities in which these programs take place. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from Colorado College, an MPh in Behavioral Health from Indiana University, and an MA in Political Science from the University of New Mexico.

Kathryn Overton

Email: 

koverton@unm.edu

Area of Study: 

Comparative Politics, International Relations

CV: 

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Bio: 

Kathryn Overton is a doctoral degree student in International Relations and Comparative Politics. Kathryn holds both a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and a master’s degree in Economics from the University of New Mexico (UNM). Kathryn is an interdisciplinary statistician; she has contributed to research projects in the areas of clinical medicine, education, epidemiology, and political science.   Kathryn has presented research at the annual meetings of the American Political Science Association (APSA) and the Society for Political Methodology (PolMeth). Since 2019, Kathryn has worked as a teaching assistant at the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) through the University of Michigan. Kathryn has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades. During 2021, she received the Michael Wallerstein Award (UNM) for political science research as well as a UNM National Security Studies Program-Critical Technology Studies Program Research Grant.   Kathryn has spent many years volunteering in rural, northern New Mexico and abroad. In the summer of 2021, for example, she served as a volunteer English language instructor in Kenscoff, Haiti. In Albuquerque, Kathryn currently volunteers with the NM Immigrant Law Center. She also volunteers with adult learners as a high school equivalency mathematics instructor. Each of these experiences have ignited her passion for social problems and her desire to help marginalized populations. In her free time, Kathryn enjoys volunteering abroad, studying French, and competing in Olympic-length triathlons.

Mahtab Shafiei

Email: 

mahtab@unm.edu

Area of Study: 

International Relations

Bio: 

Mahtab is a PhD student concentrating in international relations. Mahtab's research interests include human rights, women's rights, peace-building, conflict management and counter-terrorism with a focus on the Middle East. She holds a Master of Arts in Political Science with a concentration in European Studies from University of Tehran.

Miao Wang

Email: 

wangm1989@unm.edu

Area of Study: 

Comparative Politics, International Relations

Bio: 

Miao Wang is a PhD student with concentrations in International Relations and Comparative Politics, focusing on international political economy. His research interest is the political economy of regional trade agreements, with a regional focus in Asia Pacific in general, and Southeast Asia in specific. Before coming to UNM, Miao received an Msc in Islamic Finance from International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance or INCEIF (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), an educational institution affiliated with Malaysia’s central bank. He also holds a BS from Southwestern University of Finance and Economics (Chengdu, China), where he double majored in Mathematics and Economics.

Samantha Cooney

Email: 

samantharoseco@unm.edu

Area of Study: 

Comparative Politics, International Relations

CV: 

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Bio: 

Samantha Cooney is a PhD student in the Department of Political Science at the University of New Mexico. Her subfields are Comparative Politics and International Relations. She is interested in civil conflict, human rights violations, and state repression with a specific focus on Latin America. Samantha holds a B.A. in History and Political Science and a M.A. in Political Science from the University of New Mexico.