Welcome to the PhD program of the Department of Sociology at the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign! We are a vibrant community of accomplished scholars and committed teachers engaged in cutting-edge research on questions central to the field of sociology and relevant to contemporary issues. Our graduate students, like our faculty, come from a diverse array of backgrounds. We invite you to learn more by clicking the links on the right. There you will find answers to common questions about how to apply and departmental funding.

Contact a Current Student

Would you like to know more about the department from the perspective of current graduate students? They are uniquely positioned to tell you more about our graduate program and life in Urbana-Champaign. Although you are welcome to contact any of our current graduate students link to graduate student page, the students listed below have volunteered to respond to questions from prospective graduate students.

Isha Sallah
Isha Sallah

I am a first-year PhD student in the Sociology department. My broad research interests explore gender, sexuality, Blackness, Black girlhood, and Queer of Color Critique. Currently, I am interested in film and television as a medium for analysis with a focus on Black femme and Black Queer subjects. I am a pop-culture enthusiast, so when I’m not working, I am always catching up on movies, television, and pop-culture trends. I love all things fashion, beauty, and visual art. Above all, I feel most at home spending quality time with family and friends. Please feel free to reach out with any questions you might have—I would love to hear from you! isalla2@illinois.edu 

Jacob Richardson
Jacob Richardson

I am a second-year PhD student in the Sociology department. In a broad sense, my research areas include sexualities, deviance, queer theory, political sociology, affect/emotions, and qualitative methodologies. I have written about how affirmative consent policies reinforce cis- and heteronormative sexual scripts and does not account for queer sexual practices, which is problematic for many LGBTQ+ students. In my recent work, I use autoethnography and queer theory to explore how cruising for sex in public can be a form of edgework (leisurely, voluntary risk-taking) that challenges the taken-for-granted relationship between sexual practices and identity formations. I also write about how disciplinary epistemologies rooted in positivism constrain how marginalized scholars produce knowledge. In my free time I enjoy being active and spending time outside, going to the movies, local bookstores, and drinking too much cold brew. Please reach out to me if you are interested in the Sociology PhD program at UIUC and have questions! jacobr6@illinois.edu