Adriana L. Hernández Castañeda
Economist & demographer: labor, migration, and gender, across places.
I study how labor markets, migration, and gender inequality unfold geographically, using survey microdata, administrative records, and maps. I've built population estimates used by New York State agencies, co-authored the UC Berkeley Labor Center's statewide study of civil-service vacancies, and published peer-reviewed research on the changing sex composition of US immigrant communities.
I'm completing a PhD at the University of California, Davis, and was a 2025 Fulbright García Robles finalist. I work natively in Spanish and English.
AboutTrained in economics, working across borders
I was trained in economics (BA, Sonoma State University; MS, University of Nevada, Reno) and I'm now completing a PhD at UC Davis, where my research combines econometrics with spatial demography; the maps matter as much as the regressions.
At Cornell University's Program on Applied Demographics (2018–2021), I produced demographic analysis supporting New York State's official population-estimates program, authored memos on household formation and population-estimate revisions, and presented statistical-area updates to the New York State Department of Labor. At the UC Berkeley Labor Center (2022–2023), I co-authored Civil Service Vacancies in California: 2022–2023, a statewide study of public-sector hiring challenges and the policies that could fix them.
My current research spans both sides of the US–Mexico relationship, and my portfolio is moving into the open: public data, public write-ups, and code releases rolling out through 2026 on the projects page.
HighlightsThree things to know
Peer-reviewed migration research
Journal of Economics, Race, and Policy · 2019
“Changing Sex-Ratios Among Immigrant Communities in the USA” (with T. A. Sorensen): how the gender composition of US immigrant communities has shifted, and what drives it.
Statewide labor policy analysis
UC Berkeley Labor Center · 2023
Civil Service Vacancies in California: 2022–2023: where California's public-sector workforce faces its largest shortfalls, across occupations, wages, and education requirements.
Demographic estimates for New York State
Cornell Program on Applied Demographics · 2018–2021
Analysis supporting the state's official population-estimates program (the numbers state agencies plan around) plus policy memos and briefs for state and local stakeholders.
ContactGet in touch
Based in Davis, California and working remotely across the US and Mexico. Open to roles in economic research, data analysis, and policy.