By Roofie Konshie ’28
This past summer, I used Pomona’s Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) to research how Ethiopian immigrants navigate life and economic mobility in the United States. With support from a sociocultural anthropology professor, I designed an independent project, set my own interview questions, and built a small research roadmap around community stories rather than just statistics.
I ended up interviewing more than 30 Ethiopian immigrants in Oregon, New York City, and the D.C. area, often in coffee shops, living rooms, or community spaces that felt like home. Many of these conversations happened in Amharic, my first language, which changed everything; people opened up about the excitement, confusion, and pressure of starting over in a new country. They told me what they wish they had known before coming to the United States, from navigating documentation and degrees to understanding credit scores, job markets, and the hidden rules of everyday life.
Back on campus, I turned those stories into a research paper that maps out both the obstacles and the pockets of support that shape Ethiopian immigrants’ economic paths. I tried to write in a way that feels useful, not just academic, by pulling out practical lessons and strategies that could help future newcomers and help current community members learn from each other. At its core, this project is about more than data; it is about honoring the courage it takes to leave home and start again, and about seeing my own family’s journey reflected in the voices of others. SURP gave me the time, funding, and mentorship to do this work with care, and I am incredibly grateful that my first big research project let me learn from my own people.
I highly recommend SURP to anyone with an interest in ANYTHING. Participating in SURP has helped me grow my creativity and fueled my eagerness to learn in ways I didn’t expect.