Jesse McCain

Biography

Jesse McCain is a PhD Candidate in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia with interdisciplinary coursework in Sociology. His research examines social stratification in higher education, exploring how structural inequalities are manifested and sustained in graduate and professional education. This includes work investigating inequality in faculty mentorship and relational dynamics, pathways through graduate education and career development, and the role of first-generation background and social class in shaping graduate and professional school experiences. He has also been a research assistant for several independent and collaborative studies, including an NSF-funded project about doctoral students’ socialization experiences in the STEM fields, a study focusing on the cultural barriers and assets of first-generation students in law school, and a study exploring the social foundations of equity-minded teaching practices among faculty in the sciences. Before beginning his doctoral studies, Jesse earned an MA in Higher Education and BA in Political Science from the University of Arizona, and worked in university admissions, student recruitment, and academic affairs.