Biography

In 2009, I graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology, Law & Society from the University of California, Irvine (UCI). I assisted my department in the exploration of rehabilitative programs for juvenile sex offenders. I also interned for the Attorney General's Office for the District of Columbia and served as chapter vice president of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). During my last year at UCI, I carried out a brief qualitative study on women serving life sentences in a southern California prison. I am interested in researching the criminalisation of women, specifically those who are seeking asylum in the United Kingdom. My study will evaluate the efficacy of the asylum system in addressing women's claims of gender persecution. More specifically, I will be looking at the discretionary power of immigration officials in detaining and criminalising female asylum applicants.