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E.g., 07/24/2026
Jennifer Van Hook
Experts & Staff
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Jennifer Van Hook

Nonresident Fellow
Professor of Sociology and Demography, Population Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University

[email protected]

Jennifer Van Hook is Professor of Sociology and Demography and Research Associate of the Population Research Institute at The Pennsylvania State University. She conducts demographic research on the settlement and incorporation patterns of U.S. immigrants, with one strand of her work focusing on estimates of the size and composition of the unauthorized foreign-born population. Her work also focuses on the social, economic, and health assimilation of immigrants and their descendants.

Media Requests
Michelle Mittelstadt
+1 202-266-1910
+44 20 8123 6265
[email protected]

Dr. Van Hook received her PhD in sociology from the University of Texas at Austin, and has held positions at the Urban Institute and Bowling Green State University before joining the faculty at Penn State.

 

Bio Page Tabs

Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States: Stable Numbers, Changing Origins
Fact Sheets
December 2020
Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States: Stable Numbers, Changing Origins
By  Randy Capps, Julia Gelatt, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto and Jennifer Van Hook
COIhealth THUMB
Reports
July 2013
Is the United States Bad for Children’s Health? Risk and Resilience among Young Children of Immigrants
By  Jennifer Van Hook, Nancy Landale and Marianne Hillemeier
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Policy Briefs
May 2013
A Demographic, Socioeconomic, and Health Coverage Profile of Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States
By  Randy Capps, Michael Fix, Jennifer Van Hook and James D. Bachmeier
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Policy Briefs
September 2010
The Demographic Impacts of Repealing Birthright Citizenship
By  Michael Fix and Jennifer Van Hook
Feature
September 1, 2009
Moving to the Land of Milk and Cookies: Obesity among the Children of Immigrants

Obesity rates among children have risen dramatically in the United States. As analysis of a nationally representative study shows, children of newly arrived immigrants are particularly vulnerable to this growing health problem. Jennifer Van Hook, Kelly S. Balistreri, and Elizabeth Baker report.

Feature
September 1, 2005
Unauthorized Migrants Living in the United States: A Mid-Decade Portrait

An estimated 10.3 million unauthorized migrants were living in the U.S. in 2004. Jennifer Van Hook, Frank Bean, and Jeff Passell report on who they are, where they live, the work they do, and their levels of education and poverty.

Feature
December 1, 2003
Poverty Grows Among Children of Immigrants in U.S.
Jennifer Van Hook of Bowling Green State University examines the increase in poverty among the children of immigrants in the United States.
Image of a newborn baby's feet
Short Reads
May 2025
Repealing Birthright Citizenship Would Significantly Increase the Size of the U.S. Unauthorized Population
By  Jennifer Van Hook, Michael Fix and Julia Gelatt
Photo of migrants in line at port of entry in Brownsville awaiting possible entry
Short Reads
February 2025
The Unauthorized Immigrant Population Expands amid Record U.S.-Mexico Border Arrivals
By  Jennifer Van Hook, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto and Julia Gelatt
A DACA recipient speaks at a DACA 12th anniversary event at the White House
Short Reads
July 2024
Diverse Flows Drive Increase in U.S. Unauthorized Immigrant Population
By  Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, Julia Gelatt and Jennifer Van Hook
Vice President Kamala Harris participates in a DACA roundtable
Short Reads
September 2023
A Turning Point for the Unauthorized Immigrant Population in the United States
By  Jennifer Van Hook, Julia Gelatt and Ariel G. Ruiz Soto
2020CensusOutreach USCensusBureau
Short Reads
July 2020
Millions of U.S. Citizens Could Be Excluded under Trump Plan to Remove Unauthorized Immigrants from Census Data
By  Randy Capps, Jennifer Van Hook and Julia Gelatt
UnauthorizedMethodologyCommentary Photo
Short Reads
September 2018
People Leave Footprints: Millions More Unauthorized Immigrants Cannot Be ‘Hidden’ in Data Estimates
By  Julia Gelatt, Michael Fix and Jennifer Van Hook

Recent Activity

Short Reads
May 2025

Repealing Birthright Citizenship Would Significantly Increase the Size of the U.S. Unauthorized Population

Repealing birthright citizenship for babies born on U.S. soil to unauthorized immigrants or temporary visa holders would have a contrary result from its stated aim of reducing the unauthorized immigrant population. Projections from MPI and Penn State show that ending birthright citizenship would increase the unauthorized population by 2.7 million as of 2045 and by 5.4 million as of 2075.

Short Reads
February 2025

The Unauthorized Immigrant Population Expands amid Record U.S.-Mexico Border Arrivals

The U.S. unauthorized immigrant population stood at 13.7 million as of mid-2023. The result of strong U.S. economic recovery from the pandemic and displacement in Latin America, the increase in the size of the unauthorized population is accompanied by a diversifying makeup in nationalities. As Mexico's share of the overall unauthorized population has declined, the shares from Central and South America, in particular, have increased.

Short Reads
July 2024

Diverse Flows Drive Increase in U.S. Unauthorized Immigrant Population

MPI estimates 11.3 million unauthorized immigrants lived in the United States as of mid-2022, up from 11.2 million a year earlier. While the country has witnessed high levels of arrivals at the U.S.-Mexico border, the unauthorized population also has been marked by significant ongoing declines in the unauthorized from Mexico and other exits, as this analysis explains.

Short Reads
September 2023

A Turning Point for the Unauthorized Immigrant Population in the United States

The unauthorized immigrant population in the United States stood at approximately 11.2 million people in mid-2021, with larger annual growth than at any point since 2015, according to MPI's latest estimates. Even as the Mexican unauthorized immigrant population continued its decade-long decline, there were new entrants from a growing array of other countries.

Fact Sheets
December 2020

Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States: Stable Numbers, Changing Origins

After decades of growth, the number of unauthorized immigrants in the United States has remained largely stable since the 2008–09 recession. The group's demographics are changing, though, with a shrinking number of Mexicans and rising Asian and Central American arrivals. This fact sheet presents a profile of these 11 million individuals, including top origin countries; U.S. destinations; and age, education, job, income, home ownership, English proficiency, and other characteristics.

Short Reads
July 2020

Millions of U.S. Citizens Could Be Excluded under Trump Plan to Remove Unauthorized Immigrants from Census Data

The Trump administration's plan to exclude unauthorized immigrants from the 2020 Census data used to reapportion 435 congressional seats among the 50 states could misclassify as many as 20 million U.S. citizens, as the result of expected data-matching errors. The effects of this exclusion could be most pronounced in low-income urban and rural communities, reducing their voting power relative to more affluent ones, as this commentary explains.

Short Reads
September 2018

People Leave Footprints: Millions More Unauthorized Immigrants Cannot Be ‘Hidden’ in Data Estimates

In a commentary, MPI and Penn State researchers explain why an academic article suggesting the unauthorized population is significantly higher than previously estimated derives from seriously flawed assumptions. The researchers, who peer-reviewed the analysis, find the authors overestimate successful illegal crossings by misapplying data from the 2000s to the 1990s, when crossing patterns were much different.

Reports
July 2013

Is the United States Bad for Children’s Health? Risk and Resilience among Young Children of Immigrants

This report summarizes new data on the health of the children of immigrants, who represent nearly one-fourth of all children in the United States under the age of 18, finding that those with Mexican immigrant parents in particular tend to experience greater childhood health risks than most of their peers.

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