Professional Bio

Esmeralda Sánchez Salazar’s research examines how educational, familial, religious institutions, and the state intersect to shape racial and ethnic stratification in higher education, science, and the labor market. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, her research focuses on three primary research streams: 1) how social institutions intersect to shape racial and ethnic inequalities in immigrant outcomes, 2) racial and ethnic stratification in science, 3) inequities in higher education attainment among Latinos and English Learners. Her research has received funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine Ford Foundation Fellowship, and The Sociology of Science and Religion Funding Initiative, among others. She has published in journals such as Social Problems (forthcoming), Ethnic and Racial Studies, and Sociology of Religion. Salazar earned a master’s degree from the University of Texas at Dallas and a bachelor’s degree from Southern Methodist University.

Research Interests

race and ethnicity; stratification and inequality; education; religion