Social Science PhD Program Recent Graduates

Our graduates go on to a rich mix of careers in academic, research and professional settings, making a meaningful contribution to the public good in communities around the world.

Alumni of the program are now approaching 500 in number, live in all corners of the globe, and hold a variety of professional and academic positions. While the majority of graduates hold academic appointments, others work in public agencies, private firms, NGOs and other non-profit organizations as researchers, consultants, administrators and leaders.

Below is a brief list of accomplishments of our alumni over the past 10 years.

Kent Jason Cheng

Contact Information:

kgcheng@psu.edu

Advisor:

Janet M. Wilmoth

Personal Website

Kent Jason Cheng

Alum, Social Science Ph.D. Program

Graduate Student Dissertation Title

Three essays on intergenerational transfers.

Bio

Kent is a social gerontologist and population health scientist who studies life course determinants of health in the United States, Philippines and across the globe. He has written over 25 peer-reviewed articles.

His recent work appears in Social Science and Medicine - Population Health, The Milbank Quarterly, Journal of Applied Gerontology, Preventive Medicine, PLoS One, Journal of Rural Health, Quality of Life Research, Journal of Family Psychology, and Family Process.

As a National Institute of Aging funded T32 postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Healthy Aging at Penn State, he studies the health implications of family characteristics and social welfare policy.