London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

“Aside from LSHTM’s stellar reputation in the field, I decided to study at the School as it was one of the only schools to offer such a flexible distance learning programme at the time; it really made it my first choice. For me as a medical student and even today as a digital health entrepreneur, it was incredibly precious to get these additional, diverse perspectives on health taught at the School. Everything from anthropology to epidemiology or just a general macro-perspective on health truly transformed my thinking.

“Although I was a distance learning student, I had various close interactions with the School and still continuously engage with individual alumni and groups around the globe. This is mostly through informal encounters but also some alumni events and groups. It’s always a joy to see the different paths that LSHTM alumni follow; they’re very diverse.

“I left clinical medicine to build scalable digital solutions to improve public health, working closely together with a variety of innovators from machine learning engineers to business leaders, investors, designers, etc. Without the learnings from the MSc in Public Health, I don’t think that I would have been capable of doing this. 

“I am working on a number of digital solutions that aim to lead the transition from a reactive to a proactive healthcare system. I hope to enable many more innovators around the world to deliver at their best.

“One good thing that came out of the COVID-19 pandemic was that many healthcare systems are now using digital technologies much more widely than they would previously have thought. COVID-19 is pulling the future forward, which I see as a good thing for global health.

“My advice to current students is to really try to create a network well beyond your core expertise. Too many healthcare experts stick within their own bubble. Engaging with software developers, engineers, business people and others can open entirely new opportunities for having a massive impact if you’re able to interface seamlessly with these other professions.”

Want to share your story? Email alumni@lshtm.ac.uk.