Teaching

While at UC Irvine, I taught courses across multiple subfields in the social sciences, including political theory, law and society, comparative politics, social science theory and research methods, and a capstone research course in public policy. I also have experience teaching upper-division writing courses. I have a particular interest in multilingual writing and encouraging students to draw on their native languages to strengthen their analytical and critical thinking skills.

Selected Courses Taught

Field Studies in Social Policy and Public Service 

Dilemmas of Diversity

Introduction to Chinese Politics

Introduction to Law

Law and Society

Principles in the Social Science 

Computer-Based Research in the Social Sciences

Mentorship

As part of my commitment to empowering students, I have mentored several students in research, academic writing, and preparing for their future academic and professional careers. Many of my mentees are first-generation college students and have been accepted into prestigious M.A. and Ph.D. programs, including at NYU, Harvard, UCLA, UC Irvine, Georgetown, and The Ohio State University. 

Selected Comments from Students

"Alexandra is great at helping you find your voice – not just in your assignments but as an individual with their own perspective in academia. Overall one of the most personable, dedicated, proactive, challenging, and insightful TAs I've ever had."

"The quality of the feedback for the assignments and attention to detail was unlike any other. The effort and attention that Alexandra had for the class was something I never experienced before. She cared so much for the academic succes of all the students and helped in every part of our class."

"The attention to detail in every feedback revision, whether through office hours, over Canvas email, or during class – was extremely integral to my learning and outcomes in this class. As this class was the culmination of a year-long research, she understood what I would try to convey, and instructed me how to write with clarity & precision. She was very patient in teasing out the nuances of my research and writing, and sharpening my argument or intervention I was making. She was also very encouraging, affirming me that my work is relevant and important."

"She always built off of ideas and validated that students were pointed in the right direction. There was never a moment of her spoon-feeding us information, it always felt like we were conclusively reaching the concepts on our own and she just guided us there."

"Alexandra was an incredible support throughout my research journey. She always believed in me and in all of her students. She encouraged us to reach our full potential and consistently pushed us to do our best work. Her explanations were clear, and she maintained high expectations because she genuinely believed we could meet them."