Biography

Mario Varo is a first-year Ph.D. student and Eugene V. Cota-Robles fellow in the Department of Sociology at UCLA. His research investigates the intersections of U.S. immigration policy, border enforcement, and health & human rights. His current project examines U.S. border externalization practices in Tijuana, Mexico, and how such policies expose asylum seekers to health disparities and violence.

Mario’s higher education journey began in the community college system (Chaffey College) before he transferred to UC Berkeley, where he earned a B.A. in Political Science with honors. He is a proud first-generation college student from the Inland Empire whose family immigrated from Oaxaca, Mexico.