Melissa Osborne
Associate Professor
About
My primary research centers on social mobility, inequality, and the role that organizations play in shaping individuals’ pathways and experiences. I have published research that explores this dynamic in the contexts of education, social services, law, and medicine. My forthcoming book, Polished: College, Class, and the Burdens of Social Mobility (University of Chicago Press), examines how selective colleges reshape first-generation students and considers the impact this process has on these students as they navigate expected and unexpected challenges during college.