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Job Title: Assistant Professor Of Medicine And Epidemiology
Type of Company: I do cancer epidemiology research at a school of medicine in Boston.
Education: BS in Biology, Tufts University •• MPH in Epidemiology, Boston University School of Public Health •• ScD in Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health
Previous Experience: After my doctoral training, a did a post-doctoral fellowship in Sweden and then came back to Boston as an Instructor at Harvard. Promoted to Assistant Professor in 2006.
Job Tasks: I am a public health researcher trying to understand why some men get prostate cancer, and to see whether there are things men can do to reduce their chances of developing the disease. For example, I study whether if men consume a lot of tomatoes or have high levels of vitamin D, they will have a lower risk of developing prostate cancer.
This type of public health research involves the fields of epidemiology and biostatistics. My days are quite varied, and involve meetings with colleagues to discuss new research ideas, writing grant applications to apply for funding to support our research, working on a statistical analysis to study a specific hypothesis, and attending research meetings to present the results of our studies.
As an assistant professor, I am also responsible for a fair amount of teaching graduate students at the university where I work, and I teach about 16 weeks each year. I also work closely with graduate students, to provide career and research advice.
The work environment is quite fast-paced, exciting and fun. Through my work, I have the chance to travel around the world to attend meetings and conferences. Ultimately, we hope our research will have a positive impact on the health of men, and help reduce suffering.
Best and Worst Parts of the Job: Best parts of the job-- My research work is like being a detective who solves mysteries around health and diseases. I feel that my work makes a bigger, positive impact on our society around us. I have considerable independence, and can make my own hours. I have freedom to develop new ideas, and to work with some of the smartest individuals in my field.
Job Tips: Get experience as a research assistant in epidemiology or public health to see if it is a good fit for your interests--this will also be helpful in getting into a top graduate school.
Additional Thoughts: Few young people are formally exposed to epidemiology or public health, yet there are exciting jobs in this area of research.
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