ALUMNI PROFILES
Seth Sullivan MPH (Graduated in February 2007)
Presently completing my internal medicine training at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota where I will also start a fellowship in infectious diseases in July of 2009.
Hello, my name is Seth Sullivan. I graduated from the online public health program at UMASS-Amherst in 2007 and am happy to share my experience with you.
I attended medical school at the University of Missouri-Kansas City
on the Navy’s Health Professions Scholarship Program. After graduating in 2002, I completed my internal medicine internship at the Naval Medical Center-San Diego and commenced flight surgery training at Naval Air Station Pensacola. Over the next four years I served the Navy as a flight surgeon at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan and Naval Air Station North Island, California. Since separating from the Navy, I have been completing my internal medicine training at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota where I will also start a fellowship in infectious diseases in July of 2009.
I am interested in global health and vaccine research, particularly influenza. Currently, I am privileged to be working with the Vaccine Research Group at the Mayo Clinic led by the highly respected vaccinologist, Dr. Greg Poland.
Before making my decision, I thoroughly researched MPH programs. I chose UMASS-Amherst because it was a reputable but affordable program that was flexible enough
to accommodate my unpredictable military schedule. The knowledgeable and professional staff and impressive faculty sealed the deal for me. And this professionalism went well beyond initial impressions. The professors understood when I had conflicting obligations and MaryBeth was instrumental in facilitating a smooth and pleasant learning environment from the opposite side of the world.
My classmates were equally impressive. The mix of their experiences and perspectives solidified the concepts outlined by the instructors and tremendously enhanced the overall experience. I particularly enjoyed the rich class discussions in comparative health care systems, one of the many available electives.
The MPH program at UMASS-Amherst has served me well. It has broadened my clinical views and provided requisite tools for the research that I do. The alumni network is broad and we frequently receive job postings worldwide that require skills this program teaches. I have been impressed, but not surprised, to learn about the continued growth of this fully accredited and progressive program. As I continue to benefit from the MPH degree I earned UMASS-Amherst, it is clear that I made the right choice.
