In this article, the author argues that current strategies to study and understand students' identities fall short of fully capturing their complexity. A multi-dimensional perspective and a mixed-methods approach can reveal nuance that is missed with current approaches. The author offers an illustration of how mixed-methods research can promote a more nuanced understanding of how students perceive their identity. Further, she highlights the ways in which intersectionality and mixed methods can inform seemingly one-dimensional categories, such as race, as well as identity more broadly defined, where all salient characteristics (race, gender, class) are considered simultaneously. Finally, she concludes the article with a discussion of application of these ideas to practice within the context of institutional research.