DPhil Student Spotlight: Xinyi Zhao
Xinyi joined the Department and St Hugh's College in 2021, after studying Bachelor's and MSc degrees in Cartography & GIS. She is supervised by Ridhi Kashyap and Emilio Zagheni, and is affiliated with the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research.
Why study Sociology?
My background in GIS technology opened a new door to me where human factors interact with those relating to the physical environment.
Through this technology, the complex world of human behaviours can be understood and predicted with advanced tools and various types of data. For example, satellite imagery can link the built environment to population health and other demographic factors, and geographically referenced data can improve overall knowledge of demographic events, including population change and migration processes.
Driven by such observations and learning experiences, I aim to bring some unique and useful insights to demography and sociology, particularly relating to questions linked to migration and gender disparities.
What first attracted you to the course at Oxford?
During the Covid-19 pandemic, I was impressed by the contributions to data-driven policy interventions from Oxford's Sociology Department and the Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science (LCDS)
I kept tracking their latest research discoveries about social interactions and pandemics, fervently hoping to be a member of the team. This research has greatly motivated me to resolve the most challenging demographic problems of our time.
Additionally, I was drawn to the excellent research by my supervisor, Professor Ridhi Kashyap. She examines the implications of digital technologies on demographic outcomes, such as monitoring global digital gender inequality using the online populations of Facebook and Google. Her work has instilled in me much inspiration and enthusiasm to do my research, and I feel privileged to work with her.
What have you enjoyed most about studying within Oxford's Sociology department?
I enjoy the DPhil workshops and seminars that the Department provides for us to develop our research skills, and to keep track of cutting-edge research.
During workshops in our first year, we had the opportunity to present and actively discuss our project proposals. The constructive comments from other DPhil students helped me a lot in improving my work. I felt more engaged in a multi-disciplinary environment where I have learnt a lot from other students' work within different areas.
What do you enjoy the most about studying at Oxford?
As Oxford students, we get dual support from both the departments and colleges. Being affiliated to two communities really enriches my university life with various academic and entertainment activities, and makes me feel more engaged as I meet people with different backgrounds.
What are your research interests?
My main research interests include applying digital and computational innovations (e.g. new types of data and methods) in demography and social science, with a particular interest in gender disparity in academia. I am also interested in the fields of Scientometrics, spatial data analysis, and GIS.
Do you have any advice for prospective students?
Things will not always go as you expect when doing research. All the challenges and problems will be solved at the end. When you look back afterwards, you will find that what you experienced will help you become better.
What do you hope to do when you finish your course?
Ideally, I'd like to find a Postdoc position to continue my research and further fulfil myself after graduation. In the long run, I hope to conduct data-driven social science research and demographic research that informs the public about the issues and attitudes shaping our world, either in academia or in research centres like think tanks.
