Meghna Mukherjee

"When I'm not worrying about how genetic technologies are turning us into cyborgs, you can find me with my family, out enjoying nature, or thinking about what's for dinner. My heart belongs to my dogs Bean and Yoko." - Meghna

Department: 
Sociology Department
Bio/CV: 

About Meghna: 

Meghna (she/her) is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Sociology, studying social inequity arising alongside reproductive and genetic technologies. Prior to graduate school, Meghna worked in the nonprofit and social development field in New York City and pursued research related to commercial reproductive labor policies in India. Meghna holds an MA in Sociology from UC Berkeley and a BA in Sociology (honors) and Human Rights from Columbia University. She tries her best to continue contributing to these spaces as a graduate student, through which the NavCal community has been incredibly dear to her as an anchor and purpose. While Meghna has lived in the US for all of her adult life, she was born in Siliguri, India, and raised all over the world - Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Oman, the United Arab Emirates.

Accolades: 

  • Outstanding Graduate Student Instructor awarded by UC Berkeley Graduate Division (2021)
  • Graduate Student Paper Honorable Mention awarded by the Pacific Sociological Association (2021)

    • "How Do You Want Your Eggs? Kin-making in the Clinic and Social Reproduction in Kolkata and the Bay Area

  • Graduate Student Paper Honorable Mention awarded by the Council on Anthropology and Reproduction (2020)

    • “Hamstrung by Hardship: Protecting Egg Donors’ Reproductive Labor in Kolkata, India” 

  • Best New Employee for role as a Grants Officer at The Door/University Settlement (2016)

  • Dissertation Research Grant awarded by UC Berkeley’s Center for Race and Gender (2021)

    • Immaculate Re-Conception: Redefining Health and Reproductive Risk Using Prenatal Genetic Testing

  • Berkeley Connect Fellowship awarded by UC Berkeley (2021-2022)

  • Albireo Group Fellowship awarded by the Albireo Group (2019-2020, 2020-2021)

  • Instructor of Record, “Introduction to Sociology for Pre-Health majors” (Summer 2021)

  • UC Berkeley Data Science Education Program, Graduate Student Researcher: Human Contexts and Ethics

  • UC Berkeley NavCal and Institute for Research on Labor & Employment “Research Pathways” program: Founder, Program Coordinator, and Mentor (2020-2021)

Research interests: 

Gender, Medical Sociology, Fertility and Genetic Technologies, Reproductive Labor, South Asia   

Role: 
Graduate Student