Brandon Garcia

In the Population, Health and Place Ph.D. program, Brandon is interested in examining how health behaviors and outcomes are affected by social determinants of health for socioeconomically disadvantaged and medically underserved communities. In particular, he would like to study the systematic variations of resources that racial and ethnic minorities have and look into how this affects access to medical care.

A first-gen student, Brandon researched at the intersection of sociology and public health while obtaining his BS in Biology with minors in Global Health and Chicano Studies from UCLA. As an MS in Health Systems Management Engineering student at USC Viterbi, he conducted quantitative and qualitative community-based participatory research with the USC Student Health, Office for Health Promotion Strategy.

He also was a research assistant for the USC Center for Education, Identity and Social Justice and worked on several performance improvement projects with the Los Angeles General Medical Center (LAC + USC).

M.S. Systems Management Engineering, Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California

B.S. Biology; Minors in Global Health and Chicano Studies, University of California, Los Angeles (departmental honors)

Ahmadi, S., Boarnet, J., Garcia, B., Majumder, M. (2021). Targeted and Omitted: Institutional Role of Protecting Minoritized Religious Groups Against Hate Crimes. Journal of College and Character.

USC Well-being Collective. Covid-19 Return to Campus. Los Angeles, CA: University of Southern California; 2021.

USC Well-being Collective. Student Well-being Forum Summary. Los Angeles, CA: University of
Southern California; 2021.

USC Well-being Collective. Student Sense of Belonging. Los Angeles, CA: University of Southern California; 2022.

USC Well-being Collective. Inclusive Learning Environments. Los Angeles, CA: University of Southern California; 2022.

Garcia, B. , Rodriquez, S., What it Takes to Thrive: Understanding First-Generation Transfer STEM Students’ Experiences in Higher Education, poster presentation at the USC Rossier School of Education PASA Symposium; May 2021; Los Angeles