Comfort Kunak Ogar, BPharm, MPH, MMSc
Global Safety Expert, World Health Organization
Nigeria
MMSc-GHD Class of 2022

Comfort Ogar is a recent 2022 graduate of the MMSc-GHD program. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she is the only student to do the entire program online. Until recently, Comfort was a Principal Technical Advisor and pharmacovigilance lead for the USAID-funded Medicines, Technologies and Pharmaceutical Services (MTaPS) program led by Management Sciences for Health. There she supported low- and middle-income countries in Africa and Asia to establish or strengthen their regulatory systems, focusing on pharmacovigilance systems.

A pioneer of active pharmacovigilance in Africa, Comfort worked as a regulator for 18 years at Nigeria’s National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control. She was instrumental in establishing the country’s national pharmacovigilance system. Now she works as a subject matter expert for the Task Force for Global Health’s Brighton Collaboration to support the establishment of active safety surveillance for COVID-19 vaccines in LMICs. She is also a global safety expert for the World Health Organization, supporting the introduction of the novel oral polio type 2 vaccine (nOPV2). Comfort is the secretary of the Africa chapter of the International Society of Pharmacovigilance (ISoP).

In May, Comfort defended her thesis project, “Monitoring Adverse Events to SARS CoV-2 (COVID-19) Vaccines and Understanding the Policy Considerations that Inform the Funding of Safety Surveillance in Low- and Middle-Income Countries,” and hopes to put the research to work as soon as possible.

The MMSc-GHD program was pleased to welcome Comfort to Boston for graduation. She was kind enough to sit down and answer our questions before returning home.

What do you hope to do with your MMSc degree?

I hope to use the knowledge and experience gained from the MMSc degree to enhance the scope of my work on ensuring the safety of pharmaceutical interventions (medicines and vaccines) used for treating or preventing illness. I am particularly interested in advocating for social protection for people who do not have any social protection such as health insurance and have to suffer the double burden of financial hardship and catastrophic expenditure because of an adverse event from seeking health care.

Why was getting a master’s degree important to you and your career?

Even though I already had a master’s degree, attending the MMSc GHD program at the Harvard Medical School was important to me for several reasons, including the chance to study at one of the most prestigious universities in the world and to have a wider network of researchers, students/alumni, and faculty from Harvard with whom I can collaborate in my area of work. In my part of the world, a Harvard degree is highly regarded, and I believe that it will more readily open doors that will allow me to pursue my dream of improving the safety of medicines used in LMICs. 

Why did you choose the MMSc-GHD program?

The reviews from the program were great. I heard so much about the great and supportive faculty that runs the program. It also had students, alumni, and faculty that work and do research in those parts of the world where much of my work is situated. Thus, it provided good opportunities for networking and collaboration even after graduation. Also, the GMAT was not a prerequisite for admission, which further encouraged me to apply for the program.

What about the MMSc-GHD program that surprised you the most?

The amount of support that is provided by the program. In my part of the world, education is usually a difficult endeavor, made worse by faculty who delight in making students suffer even more and take delight when students fail. But I found that the faculty will do everything possible to ensure that you pass the program. I was pleasantly surprised at how supportive and accommodating the program is.

How would you say the program has impacted your everyday work?

The program has increased my confidence level to about 99%. I now feel more confident in doing everyday things, at work and outside, that I would have probably hesitated about before. It reinforced my belief in myself and assured me that I could do quite a lot.

What advice would you give current or prospective MMSc-GHD students?

I will advise them that the program is worth every cent spent (especially if paying out of pocket) because it gives you a fresh and new perspective on things, especially globally. It opens your mind to things you took for granted previously, plus the faculty and staff are incomparable.

Interview June 3, 2022, by Bailey Merlin.

Odell W. Kumeh, MD, MMSc
Deputy Director, Center for Teaching and Learning
Monrovia, Liberia
MMSc-GHD Class of 2018

Odell Kumeh is a physician who trained in Liberia at the A.M. Dogliotti College of Medicine, the John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Sinkor, and had post-internship surgical training at Phebe Hospital in Suakoko and Redemption Hospital. Before joining the MMSc-GHD program in 2016, she served as County Health Officer in Maryland County and was later appointed as County Health Officer for Bomi County.

Odell graduated from the MMSc-GHD program in 2018. Odell’s thesis project, “Literacy is Power: Structural Drivers of Child Malnutrition in Rural Liberia,” was published in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health in December 2020.

As a way of paying it forward, upon her return from the program, she enrolled in the College of Health Sciences at the University of Liberia, where she now serves as Coordinator of Teaching and Learning. She is an adjunct faculty of the College of Medicine, where she teaches Primary Health Care, a public health course, to fifth-year students. At the School of Public Health of the University of Liberia, she is the Director of the Public Health Seminar and a lecturer.

In honor of the MMSc-GHD program’s tenth anniversary, we caught up with Odell.

What have you been up to since graduation?

Since graduation, I have been with the College of Health Sciences of the University of Liberia as the Coordinator for the Center for Teaching and Learning, fostering faculty development. I also served as Transition Lead for the Fixed Amount Reimbursable Agreement (FARA), a USAID-funded project. After one year, I was promoted to Deputy Program Manager of the National Malaria Control Program.

I also joined my colleagues in establishing the Master of Public Health at the College of Health Sciences at the University of Liberia. I lead the Public Health Seminar series. We graduated our first cohort on March 21, 2022.

Why was a master’s degree important to you and your career?

As a physician from a low-resource setting, it was important to me to help contribute to my community on a larger, broader scale. In order to do this, I needed to qualify myself with the knowledge to enhance my ability and performance. It was essential to my career because I wanted to gain confidence in my skills acquired from the field to lead and work with people who came from diverse cultural backgrounds.

Why did you choose the MMSc-GHD program?

I chose the program because the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine seeks to impact health care at every angle of life. In doing so, faculty, students, and staff create awareness of equity that is of paramount importance in promoting health care and enlightening the minds of policymakers. Health care is a fundamental human right and must be carried to the last mile reaching the poorest of the poor, a way of pursuing social justice.

What about the MMSc program that surprises you the most?

I would say the closely netted family relationship in the program, the uniqueness that occurs between the cohort and program administration, and the availability and readiness of Christina, Bailey, and others to swiftly assist students whenever the need arises.

How would you say the program has impacted your life?

The program has impacted my life greatly. I have become an asset to my country by imparting my knowledge on research and publication to younger generations.

What is the biggest project that’s brought you the most professional satisfaction since graduating from the program?

The program that has brought me the most professional satisfaction since graduation is the Bridge U Project, which encompasses different faculty advancement and training levels. The project has departments where staff can be trained to meet present-day realities,  improve the skills of faculty to better understand the concepts of skill-based education, and develop interpersonal and group communication skills to enhance their interactions with students.

What advice would you give current or prospective MMSc-GHD students?

I would encourage them to take their career path seriously, focus on classes, and relentlessly pursue the publication of their thesis.

Interview March 27, 2022, by Bailey Merlin.

Jude Beauchamp, MD, MMSc
TB/DRTB Physician
MMSc-GHD Class of 2017

After Jude Beauchamp, MD, MMSc '17 published his MMSc-GHD thesis research “Ambulatory Treatment for Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis in Rural Haiti: A Mixed-Methods Study of Social and Economic Factors Affecting Timely Diagnosis and Treatment Success” in the Global Journal of Health Science, we reached out for his perspective on his time in the program.

Jude’s thesis project “Social and economic factors leading to delayed diagnosis of MDR-TB and affecting the success of ambulatory treatment in rural Haiti: A three-part mixed methods study” followed patients with MDR-TB in remote areas of Haiti who face barriers that delay their ability to initiate and complete treatment. To ensure the successful decentralization of MDR-TB treatment, Jude wanted to address those barriers. Over the course of eight months, his team conducted a mixed-methods study at two MDR-TB facilities in rural Haiti to identify factors that impact MDR-TB treatment initiation and documented treatment response after discharge from the hospital. After discovering factors that contributed to delayed treatment initiation, his thesis proposed that strong nutritional, social and financial support were essential to support appropriate treatment for MDR-TB.

Why was getting a master’s degree important to you and your career?

Growing up in Haiti, my interaction with the health system—on countless occasions—was always frustrating. The health system was, and still is, terribly weak. The need is so big; this, in part, motivated me to pursue a career in medicine in the first place. After graduating from medical school, I worked in the countryside where I further witnessed the struggles that poor people in resource-poor settings face daily in seeking quality healthcare. The impact of poverty on health outcomes was clear.

Most patients I have cared for were affected by tuberculosis, drug-resistant tuberculosis (DRTB), and HIV, with poverty being the underlying condition most of the time. Clearly, I needed to have a bio-social approach to provide biomedical care, but also, and perhaps more importantly, the social support that the conditions required. As I have dedicated my life to practicing social medicine, it became urgent for me to study and further understand the social determinants of health and address barriers/challenges patients face in seeking medical assistance. To provide the right accompaniment, they need to succeed in their treatment.

Why did you choose the MMSc-GHD program?

As I alluded in my previous comments, I was looking for a program that could fit my social medicine practice goals, a program that can equip me with skills, knowledge to identify and address barriers, patients in poor, remote settings faced. The MMSc-GHD curriculum centered around health equity and social justice and gave me the environment and resources needed to achieve my goals.

What about the MMSc-GHD program surprised you the most?

What was interesting and surprising to me was the heavy ethnographic approach of the program. I was fortunate to have worked with patients in remotes settings all life, getting educated by them, practically speaking. Still, the program really gave me methods, theory, and taught me how to really put myself in the patients’ shoes, to work with the patient, to walk the patient’s journey. In doing so, I’ve gained a little understanding of their struggles and barriers they face while seeking care, which I learn to take this into consideration while planning for them. 

I have many examples in my thesis projects because DRTB treatment is so centralized in Haiti, patients face long journeys while seeking, and during the duration of, their treatment. I had the opportunity to visit some of these patients and witnessed the calamity they are going through to come for follow-up visits. This spoke volumes on the importance of treatment decentralization: putting care closer to the patient.

How would you say the program has impacted your everyday work?

The skills I gained and the Ethno-biosocial approach I learned make me feel closer to my patients. The program reinforces in me the perception that care goes beyond clinics/hospitals. As one of my mentors used to say, “Food is medicine.” While seeing, planning for my patients, I try to be as holistic as possible, considering the social support they need to make the treatment journey and frankly beyond, addressing of we can, poverty that often is the catalyzer in their health calamity.

What is the biggest project/project that’s brought you the most professional satisfaction since graduating from the program?

The recent joint implementation—with the national tuberculosis program of Liberia—of all oral short-term treatment regimens for DRTB under operational research conditions. DRTB treatment is cumbersome for many reasons, including its long duration and the drug’s side effect (mostly the injectables). The approval of Bedaquiline and Delamanid was quite revolutionary as it allowed clinicians and patients to opt for an all-oral regimen with less complication for patients.

Recently, the all-oral short-term regimen makes DRTB treatment even less cumbersome; we could transition patients to an all oral, effective treatment regimen and properly monitor them. We implement this regimen under operational research conditions, to vigorously monitor our patients and anticipate any side effects that might arise; so far, most of our patients respond very well to treatment. Liberia is among the first, if not the first in West Africa, to transition to all oral short-term treatment regimens.

What advice do you have for prospective students?

A very important part of this master’s program, which frankly makes it unique, is the 6 to 8 months on-site project. This is a unique period where students put to work theories learned during the first year to identify a health challenge, to make suggestions on how to mitigate the identified challenge. The skills that I built while conducting my research project always come in handy in my work. I would encourage students to put their very best in planning and implementing their research projects. Methods and skills they will learn during their project will probably stay with them for their careers. As professionals work to make health care more accessible to a vulnerable population, we will always need to do an autopsy of the system we are dealing with to find what is broken and how to fix it. For many students, including myself, this program period might be where these skills needed will be built.

Interview August 11, 2021 by Bailey Merlin.

Nadeem Kasmani, MD, MMSc
Boston, MA
MMSc-GHD Class of 2019

We are pleased to announce that MMSc-GHD alum Nadeem Kasmani has joined the program. He will be working as a Teaching Assistant to help students with their qualitative and quantitative courses this fall.

Nadeem’s thesis project was centered on Bhutanese refugees in Massachusetts because their suicide rate is almost double that of the American average. Working with the local Bhutanese NGO, ARISE, Nadeem spent months in a community designed a mixed-methods study. His results showed that thwarted belonging, lack of necessary communication skills, and a high burden of disease were some of the main factors for the high rates of suicide in the community. As a part of the project, he and his team created a short film to promote mental health awareness.

We reached out to Nadeem for his perspective on being a student and instructor for the MMSc-GHD program.

Why was getting a master’s degree important to you and your career?

Before joining the master’s program, I was a practicing physician, and I loved it, but something always seemed missing. I realized that giving one’s energy and efforts to benefit someone else was always a rewarding experience. Somewhere deep down, I was frustrated with the decline treatment because a patient lacked funds or was undocumented. I wanted to do more for the ‘underrepresented’ (blue-collar workers, refugees, low-income workers).

In 2016, I attended a 27-day Global Health Delivery Intensive (GHDI) at HSPH and found my calling. GHDI gave me hope and ignited a spark in me. My desire to equip myself to do more for the ‘underrepresented’ would materialize into active work with the MMSc-GHD. I have been fortunate to get the opportunity to work on projects in Maternal and Child Health in Tanzania, pediatric cancers in Iraq, eldercare in China, and also lead a project on mental health awareness and suicide prevention among refugees resettled in the US. The master’s course work and the various projects have helped carve my path ahead in teaching research methods and epidemiology.

Why did you choose the MMSc-GHD program?

Global health is not just an approach; it is a language of sorts. A language that is unfortunately not spoken by many. I was pleasantly surprised by the involvement and enthusiasm of professors and activists like Drs. Paul Farmer and Joia Mukherjee. I began to study their work in Haiti, Peru, and Rwanda and could not help but feel a deep sense of attachment to the cause. While I am no Paul Farmer or Joia Mukherjee, my desire to turn my wordless scream against the ill-treatment of the ‘underrepresented’ to a voice of change required that I seek training and expertise needed to achieve results. The MMSc-GHD program was perfect. Learning from the experiences of the very people that inspired me was the best way to Grow. Fortunately, I was given that opportunity.

What about the MMSc-GHD program surprised you the most?

The style we are taught to approach global health issues is a language consistent with everyone in the program. We are taught a global perspective with an in-depth look into the historical context of the problems being addressed. The words ‘not sustainable’ are never used when looking at solutions; instead, every and all approaches to potential solutions are welcomed and discussed. The MMSc-GHD is not a program that focuses on just the US or Europe, or Africa. Because of its faculty’s worldwide work and diverse student population, students can work on theses with global relevance.

How would you say the program has impacted your everyday work?

I am now asking the right questions, designing suitable approaches, and acknowledging that Global Health projects and activism are all about teamwork. I currently teach research methods in the Global Health Delivery program, focusing on Qualitative and Quantitative methods. I have developed my skills with specialized biostatistics software like STATA, which I now teach and use daily. I have also been working closely with my research team in taking the master’s thesis into phase II: Creating empowerment and self-reliance among Bhutanese refugees resettled in the United States by developing and testing an English Language Learning Tool for Refugees with limited or no literacy (ELLT-LL).

Interview by Bailey Merlin.

Melino Ndayizigiye, MD, MMSc
Maseru, Lesotho
MMSc-GHD Class of 2014

Dr. Melino Ndayizigiye grew up in Southern Burundi without any access to modern medicine, influencing his decision to pursue medicine. Melino's thesis project was an assessment of barriers to contraceptive use in rural Burundi. He now works as the Executive Director of Partners In Health (PIH) in Lesotho, an innovative healthcare non-profit serving Lesotho’s most vulnerable patients in the rural remote regions of Lesotho and is supporting the implementation of health system reform.He also represents Partners In Health to different stakeholders, including the Lesotho Ministry of Health, international and local NGOs, and other health implementing partners and development agencies. He is leading a team of over 400 staff and 1200 Village Health Workers working in three PIH Lesotho core programs including: Rural Health Initiative, Multi Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis, and Health Reform programs, and several other donor-funded projects, including Southern Africa Tuberculosis and Health System Support (SATBHSS) Providing Universal Health Services for HIV/AIDS (PUSH), Many voices, Clinical Research projects including a clinical trial on Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis and Operational Research on oral shorter regimens for Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis, and COVID-19 response.

With such a full plate on his hands, the MMSc-GHD is grateful that Melino was able to spare a few minutes to speak with us about his experiences in the program.

Why was getting a master’s degree important to you and your career?

Before starting my master’s degree, I worked as a medical practitioner for six years in a private clinic in town and in rural Burundi, where I occupied different positions, including Medical Director of Matana District Hospital and District Health Manager, Medical Director of Village Health Works. Although I provided clinical services to my patients and led hundreds of staff, I always felt like I needed skills in program management, monitoring and evaluation, and research. 

Why did you choose the MMSc-GHD program?

I chose the MMSc-GHD program because it provides knowledge and skills beyond other master’s degree programs. It equips students with knowledge and skills for better health service delivery, considering social determinants of diseases and the local context of health services. It equips students with the knowledge and practical skills to design and conduct research, including quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research.  

What about the MMSc-GHD program that surprised you the most?

The program surprised me with how teaching is conducted based on real cases, not theory-based learning like MPH programs.

How would you say the program has impacted your career?

The program has changed my way of thinking about health service delivery to emphasize a holistic approach and use evidence-based interventions, which I use on a daily basis.

What advice would you give current or prospective MMSc-GHD students?

The MMSc-GHD program is the best program that equips students with the knowledge and practical skills for the health services delivery. It teaches great theories and prepares students to undertake big responsibilities of leading health programs effectively. This program is not easy, so be prepared to work hard and ask a lot of questions.

Interview by Bailey Merlin.

Aneel Brar is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Mata Jai Kaur Maternal and Child Health Centre located in Rajasthan, India. It is a village-based health care delivery and innovation center that provides quality maternal and reproductive health care to vulnerable women in a remote rural area along the India-Pakistan border. In addition to this core health care delivery work, Aneel is currently a part of a team that is testing two interventions that address the psychosocial needs of women. The first being a pilot that is a community-based psychosocial intervention for pregnant women and young mothers suffering from depression and anxiety. This project, called the Kushee Mamta Program (i.e. Happy Motherhood Program) trains local lay counsellors to deliver a psychosocial intervention based on the WHO’s Thinking Healthy Programme. The project is funded by a proof of concept grant from Grand Challenges Canada. Second, with the support of a grant from the Harvard Medical School Center for Global Health Delivery—Dubai and in collaboration with Sangath, Goa and Dr. Vikram Patel, Aneel is helping to develop a gender-based violence intervention that targets young married couples with a primary prevention campaign. The intervention utilizes local men who are themselves reformed perpetrators of violence to lead the intervention.

Sheriff Bangura, MMSc
Technical Advisor HIV/AIDS,
USAID Global Health Supply Chain Program, Chemonics Int.
Washington, DC
MMSc-GHD Class of 2019

Sheriff joins me on the Zoom call with the same great smile and quiet voice I remember. He tells me he’s in Sierra Leone visiting family for a few weeks before going back to the United States for work. Three minutes later, his internet connection makes it impossible for us to continue our conversation. COVID, however, has made us all savvy, so moments later, we’re connected via WhatsApp while I record our conversation on Zoom. Like many global health interventions, it’s not perfect, but it’ll work.

While Sheriff has a long history in pharmaceuticals, supply chains, public health, and health systems strengthening in low-resource settings, he now works for Chemonics International as a Technical Advisor for a USAID Global Health Supply Chain Procurement and Supply Management Program. It comes as no surprise that Sheriff would ascend to such professional heights given his background with Partners In Health (PIH) as the first Director of Pharmacy and Strategic Advisor of Supply Chain in Sierra Leone during and after the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

Sheriff’s work now requires him to strengthen supply chain systems at global and national levels so that people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide can have uninterrupted access to lifesaving health commodities. Which, in itself, sounds like a lot.

BAM: After thinking about your thesis project, “Do Public-Private Partnerships Improve the Delivery of Malaria Care for Under-5 Children in Sierra Leone? A Mixed-Methods Study,” I’m curious about how your thesis and your time in the program influence your work now. Could you speak to that?

SB: I think the program helped me evolve. Coming into the program, my focus was increasing access to essential medicines for vulnerable populations. My thesis centered on improving access to malaria services for under-5 children in Sierra Leone. The work I currently do with Chemonics is around providing reliable access to health commodities for people living with HIV/AIDS, a population group that was left behind by previous health programs. Being part of a team that builds systems that allow people to access critical lifesaving commodities is rewarding. I feel grateful that I can contribute to a project that has a meaningful impact on the lives of millions around the world…that is a direct link and continued interest of my focus area during the MMSc-GHD program. All the skills and research methods learned in the program can be applied in any global health work.

BAM: Was there a faculty member or class that really attracted you to us?

SB: That’s an interesting question. The faculty members played a big part in my decision to join the program. My initial choice to be a part of the program was guided by a passion for providing health care for people living on the margins of poverty. My first job out of pharmacy school in 2012 was leading a pharmacy and supply chain operation in the implementation of Sierra Leone’s Free Health Care(FHC) programs for pregnant women, lactating mothers, and children under the age of 5 at the only tertiary referral hospital for maternal care in the country… the FHC program had a major impact on improving access to maternal and child care in Sierra Leone at a time in which maternal and child mortality rates were amongst the highest globally. I served in that role for close to three years before Sierra Leone was struck by the 2014 – 2016 Ebola outbreak, the largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded in history at the time. The outbreak had a crippling impact on Sierra Leone’s weak healthcare system. At the time, I wanted to be part of the Ebola response, so I joined Partners In Health, a Boston-based non-government organization that went to Sierra Leone as part of the international response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. It was during that period that I met Dr. Paul Farmer and Joia Mukherjee…I was inspired by their deep commitment to providing a preferential healthcare option for the poor. I was lucky enough to have worked directly with these two giants of global health…I would say Paul’s and Joia’s work and the implementation of their global health programs through Partners In Health was a pulling force that got me into the program.

BAM: Your unique perspective on global health care after working with Paul and Joia is quite special. Were either of them instrumental in your decision to apply to the program?

SB: Oh yes! Just imagine meeting Paul and Joia in the field and working with some of the people they mentored. The humility, compassion, and respect with which they carry out their work was inspiring. Paul and Joia happened to be the Chair of the Department and Program Director for the MMSc-GHD program, respectively, at that time. That in itself was a reason why I wanted to be in the program. With them, I saw an opportunity to learn closely from the best leaders in the field of global health ...That desire was actualized through the MMSc-GHD program at Harvard.  

BAM: So now that you have this master’s degree, how do you feel it’s changed you personally? How did you change after the program?

SB: The program changed me a lot. It solidified my commitment to providing equitable health care for all. The love, commitment, and passion I experienced from faculty members and friends in the quest to make the world a better place had a lasting impact on me as I strive to be humble in my work and positively influence the lives of others.  

BAM: I’ll ask now, then, what I ask of all our alumni: What advice would you give to current or prospective GHD students?

SB: My advice to current and prospective students would be for them to spend more time early in the program thinking about their aspirations after graduating from the program and to work with mentors that would help them with their career goals. Take advantage of the mentorship opportunities within the program!

Mentorship is a cornerstone of the Global Health Delivery program, and it’s good to hear that Sheriff is still in contact with his primary mentor, Dr. Regan Marsh. The two of them met years before in Sierra Leone when Sheriff worked for PIH. After enrollment, Regan became his primary mentor and was “the perfect match.” The recipe for a successful mentoring relationship seems to combine skill and compassion. Sheriff told me, “When I joined the program, it was the perfect match to have [Regan Marsh] as my primary mentor. On a personal level, she motivated me a lot…we’ve maintained a solid relationship. She still provides support and feedback. She’s become a friend, and I think that’s one of the things that I like about the program because it provided me with a community of mentors and friends who continue to inspire me to make positive contributions to society.”

When I think about the students in our program, I think about community. The students who join us from around the world are intensely motivated and passionate individuals, so the structure designed around them has to match that energy. From doing these interviews over the last two or so years, there have been common themes as to why this program is instrumental in a student’s success.

According to Sheriff, it’s people like Program Manager Christina Lively, Program Director Joia Mukherjee, and teaching faculty that make students feel supported. Sheriff said, “You can’t forget to talk about the level of support you receive during your time in the program. Imagine the pressure, doubt, and anxiety that come with being at one of the most elite schools in the world, especially for someone with my background, coming from Sierra Leone, one of the poorest countries in the world. During those first few weeks, I wasn’t sure whether I could fit in my new environment, nor did I have an idea of how I could make it through the program. The faculty’s deep understanding of culture was instrumental in creating an inclusive learning environment. I love the people in the program.”