Kwon is an interdisciplinary scholar, a humanistic social scientist, who works across several fields including Asian American studies, critical ethnic studies, critical youth studies, anthropology, and cultural studies. Her research interests include national and global youth politics, global governance and citizenship, and institutionalization of race and diversity in higher education. She is the author of Uncivil Youth: Race, Activism, and Affirmative Governmentality (Duke University Press, 2013) and co-editor of South Korea’s Educational Exodus: The Life and Times of Early Study Abroad (University of Washington Press, 2015).