I began my time at Heller as a Conflict Resolution and Coexistence student, but quickly realized I wanted to pursue a degree in Global Health Policy and Management as well: I am extremely interested in the intersection of conflict management, gender, and sexual health, and in the future, I hope to work with women and girls in conflict zones to address their sexual and reproductive health needs. I feel confident that earning degrees in both COEX and GHPM will further this goal and will allow my knowledge in these fields to expand even greater. I love that I have the opportunity at Heller to blend the curriculums of the COEX and GHPM programs and that I have the chance to tailor each program to fit my professional goals and interests.
When I was first considering adding a dual degree, I wasn’t sure if the GHPM and COEX programs even made sense together: the two degrees seemed completely different from each other, and I was worried about how the dual degree would work, or how it might be viewed by future employers. Luckily, I had Heller faculty to ask a million questions about it. Sarah LaMorey, COEX’s practicum coordinator, was incredibly helpful and encouraging of my idea to pursue a dual degree. Sandy Jones was also a great resource; she is the Executive Director of Global Programs (COEX, SID, and MS-GHPM), in addition to being one of my professors. With the encouragement and positivity of Heller faculty on my side, I became much more confident in my goal of pursuing a dual degree, and feel more confident that combining these two degrees will propel me forward in my chosen career. I really appreciate having the chance to combine two degrees which truly seemed completely different from each other at first.
I do still feel nervous, though, about starting the Global Health Policy and Management portion of my dual degree in the Fall. I have never studied medicine or health policy, and science has never been a subject I’m particularly good at, so I know it may be an academic struggle for me at times. I am especially nervous about understanding statistics and analyzing data – I’m not exactly a numbers person! Even still, I feel confident that the GHPM degree will bolster the knowledge and experience I have already gained from COEX in a way that is crucial towards advancing my career aspirations.
As my year as a COEX student is now coming to an end, I am looking forward to starting my journey as a GHPM student. I know it will be quite a challenge, especially as someone without a background in science or medicine. Luckily, I already know what I can expect from Heller – a supportive cohort, excellent professors, and challenging, enlightening classes.