Parang Kim

I received my BA in Sociology and English Literature from Yonsei University in Korea in 2005.  After graduation, I worked at Korea Social Research Center, a non-profit research organization, as a research assistant to work on various projects, but mostly centering on supervising the collection and processing of data for the Korea National Youth Survey.

I have yet to specify my area of study, but I am interested in identity, cultural influences on identity formation and family.  Right now I am trying to find a way to approach the issue of “Third Culture Kids,” which "refers to someone who [as a child] has spent a significant period of time in one or more culture(s) other than his or her own, thus integrating elements of those cultures and their own birth culture, into a third culture"* from a sociological perspective.  As a person who identifies as a TCK, it has been a topic of personal interest for a long time.  Turning that into an area of professional interest is an exciting challenge.

Meeting the people of my department has been a wonderful experience, and everyday I’m learning from something new, from how to efficiently read a journal article to crankin’ that Soulja Boy!

*: http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/2065.pdf