Growing up in Pakistan, Sameer Ahmed, MPH, learned early on about the direct relationship between air quality and respiratory health. He could see the smog, and he understood its connection to asthma. And, he wanted to know about the many other factors that also shape health outcomes. In the following Q&A, he explains why he became passionate about public health, and how the MPH program has given him the added tools to make a difference in the field.

What is your background?
My academic and professional interests have centered around community health, health equity, asthma prevention, environmental health, and addressing the social determinants of health. As part of the Applied Practice Experience (APE) requirement of the MPH program, I had the honor of serving for more than a year as the Project Manager for the New York City Asthma Network (NYCAN), a citywide coalition housed within the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Bureau of Harlem Neighborhood Health.

What first attracted you to this field?
My interest in public health and asthma work is deeply personal. I was born in and spent the first 18 years of my life in Pakistan, where air pollution and poor air quality are major public health concerns. In many cities, air quality index levels can become dangerously high, especially during the season when farmers burn wheat crop stubble, which significantly worsens smog and air pollution. During those periods, hospitals often experience extreme spikes in respiratory illness-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations.

Seeing the direct relationship between environmental conditions and respiratory health sparked my earliest interest in asthma and environmental health. Over time, that evolved into a broader passion for public health as I realized that many health outcomes are shaped not only by medicine, but also by housing, environment, policy, infrastructure, and systemic inequities. Public health appealed to me because it combines science, advocacy, systems-thinking, and community engagement to create meaningful change.

Who were your mentors?  
I’ve learned from incredible mentors throughout my time at Mount Sinai and the NYC Department of Health. Sire Sow, MD, a former Mount Sinai physician and now Clinical Director of Asthma Initiatives within the Bureau of Harlem Neighborhood Health, has been my preceptor and supervisor during my time as NYCAN’s project manager, and he played a major role in helping me grow professionally within asthma and community health work. I am also deeply influenced by Geoffrey (Cappy) Collins, MD, my professor and advisor across multiple MPH courses. They included Intro to Public Health, where I first learned foundational intervention models; Public Health Lab: How to Solve Problems in Public Health, where I learned how to design public health interventions and develop grant proposals, and Communitology, where we explored community-centered public health approaches. Dr. Collins fundamentally shaped the way I think about public health and continues to inspire me. His approach to addressing public health crises reinforced my belief that sustainable health improvement requires systems-level and community-centered solutions.

What are some of your research highlights?

One was my APE, leading and coordinating projects through NYCAN that were focused on asthma disparities, housing conditions, environmental health, and implementation of New York State’s Medicaid 1115 Health Equity Reform Waiver. My capstone project explored how NYCAN’s coalition infrastructure could help address housing-related asthma conditions in East Harlem by leveraging opportunities created through Social Care Networks and health-related social needs initiatives. I also helped coordinate citywide asthma education and outreach efforts, including NYCAN’s Annual World Asthma Day Resource Fairs, coalition-wide policy and advocacy initiatives, and collaborations with health care providers, community-based organizations, and government partners across New York City.

Why Mount Sinai—what, specifically, are the strong points of the MPH program?

One of the strongest is its deep connection to New York City communities and real-world public health practice. The program emphasizes applied learning and interdisciplinary collaboration, which gave me opportunities to directly engage with government agencies, health systems, and community-based organizations throughout my studies. What especially stood out was the accessibility and support of the faculty and program leadership. Faculty and program managers were always available to guide students, provide mentorship, and support both academic and professional growth. The relatively small class sizes also created opportunities for more personalized learning and meaningful one-on-one interactions with professors and classmates. Another unique strength is Mount Sinai’s New York City location at the intersection of the Upper East Side and East Harlem, a geographic proximity that allows students to directly observe and better understand the stark health and socioeconomic disparities that exist between these two communities. Studying public health while immersed in neighborhoods shaped by such complex histories of inequity, structural injustice, and resilience made the learning experience far more tangible and meaningful.

How else did you excel at Mount Sinai?

I focused heavily on applied leadership, coalition-building, and community engagement. Through my work with NYCAN and the NYC Department of Health, I coordinated meetings, projects, and events involving partners across health care, housing, advocacy, academia, government, and community sectors. I contributed to coalition infrastructure development, policy and advocacy initiatives, public health communications, and large-scale community outreach efforts focused on asthma education and health equity. These experiences helped strengthen my leadership, systems-thinking, and collaborative problem-solving skills while contributing to work that directly impacts New Yorkers. I also appreciated the opportunity to bridge classroom learning with practical public health implementation in real community settings.

What’s Next?
I am joining the Bronx Asthma Program within the Bureau of Bronx Neighborhood Health at the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as the Asthma Community Engagement Coordinator. I’m excited to continue working in asthma prevention, environmental health, and health equity. Long-term, I’d like to continue bridging public health practice, health care systems, policy, and community-based approaches to address chronic disease disparities and improve health outcomes in underserved communities and continue to grow as a public health professional and future health care provider.

After earning a Data Science and Mathematics degree at New York University in 2024, Zirui (Frank) Feng, MDSAI, enrolled in Mount Sinai’s Master of Science in Biomedical Data Science and AI program. In the following Q&A, Mr. Feng discusses the experiences that shaped him and how he excelled.

What is your background?

I grew up in Hunan province, China. The COVID-19 pandemic shaped my early college years in a very personal way: I completed my freshman year remotely from home while watching how scientists fight with the rapidly evolving virus. I gained strong training in quantitative modeling, programming, machine learning, and large-scale data analysis. I later joined the laboratory of Yi Shi, PhD, at Mount Sinai as a part-time research assistant and began the Master of Science in Biomedical Data Science and AI program, where I found a way to connect my computational background with real biomedical discovery.

What first attracted you to this field?

My field is AI-guided antibody and protein design, which combines immunology, structural biology, machine learning, and computational modeling to design better therapeutic molecules. I was first attracted to this field because antibodies are one of the most powerful modalities in medicine, and AI creates new opportunities to understand and engineer them at a larger and faster scale. The COVID-19 pandemic made this interest feel urgent to me. I saw how quickly new viral variants could emerge, and I became interested in how AI could help rapidly design therapeutics against future pandemics. By modeling antibody–antigen interactions, exploring large sequence and structure spaces, and prioritizing promising candidates for experimental testing, AI can make therapeutic discovery more scalable and responsive. This is what drew me toward computational structural biology, nanobody discovery, and AI-guided therapeutic design.

Who were your mentors in the master program, and what are some of your research highlights?

Under Dr. Shi’s guidance, one of my major research highlights was leading the first-author study “One Thousand SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Structures Reveal Convergent Binding and Near-Universal Immune Escape,” published in Cell Systems in 2026. In this work, I analyzed more than 1,000 SARS-CoV-2 antibody structures and identified broad antigenicity across the receptor-binding domain, distinct binding strategies between IgGs and nanobodies, and near-universal immune escape by advanced Omicron variants.

I also contributed to “Repertoire-scale antibody structural prediction informs therapeutic design,” published in 2026 in Science Advances, which presents AF3-TurboAb, a high-throughput AlphaFold 3-based framework for repertoire-scale antibody–antigen structural prediction and therapeutic antibody design. Together, these accomplishments reflect my growth as a computational biomedical scientist and were recognized with the 2026 Commencement Award for Scientific Excellence in Biomedical Data Science at Mount Sinai.

Why Mount Sinai—what, specifically, are the strong points of this master program?

Mount Sinai was the right place for me because it combines biomedical research, quantitative training, translational science, and strong mentorship. The master’s program allowed me to learn computational and AI methods while applying them directly to real biological problems through highly accessible research resources. What I value most about the program is its supportive environment and flexibility. The curriculum gives students room to personalize their study track, choose courses that fit their goals, and shape their training around their own scientific direction. At the same time, the program offers abundant opportunities to rotate in different laboratories and gain research experience across multiple areas of biomedicine. This flexibility allowed me to build a path that connected data science, structural biology, immunology, and therapeutic design, while also helping me explore the broader biomedical research environment.

How else did you excel at Mount Sinai?

I grew as a scientific communicator. I presented my antibody research three times in the Department of Pharmacological Sciences: first as a poster at the 2024 Annual Research Retreat, then as an oral presentation in the Work in Progress Discussion Series, and later as an oral presentation at the 2025 Annual Research Retreat. These experiences trained me to explain complex computational and structural biology projects clearly and to receive feedback from an interdisciplinary audience. Beyond Mount Sinai, I also explored how biomedical AI is applied in industry through internships at New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. At NYSCF, I worked on machine-learning-based contamination detection for cell-culture plates, and at Regeneron, I developed an AI system for scientific document search. These experiences helped me understand how industry teams organize research, build practical solutions, and translate computational methods into real biomedical workflows.

What’s Next?

I will continue my training in the PhD in Biomedical Sciences program at Mount Sinai, focusing on computational structural biology, antibody engineering, and AI-guided protein design. My goal is to understand the key principles behind effective therapeutic molecules and use them to design better treatments. Long term, I hope to become a biotech entrepreneur and help translate computational protein design into real therapeutic platforms. The master’s program at Mount Sinai helped me move from data science into biomedical discovery, and the next step for me is to become an independent scientist who can build technologies that turn molecular insight into medicines.

Even before attending college, Nitika Kamath, MSBS, says she knew she wanted to pursue a research-focused career. But would it be in genetics, or neuroscience, her two passions? And how would she get there?

In the following Q&A, she explains how curiosity and pivotal research opportunities, first in college and later, through Mount Sinai’s Master of Science in Biomedical Science program, have put her firmly on her own career path—in neuroscience—at the intersection of neurobiology and molecular biology.

What is your background?

I completed my undergraduate studies at Sarah Lawrence College, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences. Going into college, I knew I wanted a research-focused career in either genetics or neuroscience. Through my pre-med coursework and hands-on lab experiences, my passion for neuroscience ultimately took center stage.

What first attracted you to this field?

My fascination with neuroscience truly sparked when I discovered the intersection of neurobiology and molecular biology—I was captivated by how molecular mechanisms manifest in complex behaviors and pathology. This curiosity led me to two pivotal research experiences. The first was at Sarah Lawrence during the summer of 2022 where I investigated the molecular biology of the vestibular system using zebra fish models in the lab of Cecilia Toro, PhD. Wanting to expand on this model, the subsequent summer I joined the lab of David Schoppik, PhD, at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, where I studied the effects of tau accumulation on swimming behavior. Investigating tau really solidified my desire to focus on molecular biology through the lens of neurodegenerative models, which is exactly what brought me to Mount Sinai, where I joined the lab of neuroscientist Zhenyu Yue, PhD, Professor of Neuroscience, and Neurology, which is where I completed my MSBS thesis research work and other collaborative projects.

Who were your mentors, and what are some of your research highlights?

My MSBS thesis research focused on elucidating the complex molecular pathways that mediate the prevalence and signaling capacity of primary cilia, utilizing sophisticated Parkinson’s disease mouse models to better understand neurodegenerative mechanisms. My contributions to the lab’s fast-paced environment resulted in some of the following highlights:

• Co-authored a primary literature article titled, “Targeting specific kinase substrates rescues increased colitis severity induced by the Crohn’s disease-linked LRRK2-N2081D variant,” which was published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation
• Co-authored a review paper titled, “The emerging role and therapeutic targeting of autophagy-lysosome pathways in the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease,” published in the journal Translational Neurodegeneration
• A research poster presentation at the 17th Annual Friedman Brain Institute Neuroscience Retreat.

Why Mount Sinai—what, specifically, are the strong points of this program?

Mount Sinai provided the ideal ecosystem for me to elevate my technical expertise and grow as a researcher, largely due to the exceptional culture of mentorship and collaboration. Although I entered the program without an extensive background in neuroscience, the rigorous environment gave me the training and confidence to truly define myself as a neuroscientist. Beyond the bench, Mount Sinai’s vibrant community allowed me to forge deeply meaningful professional connections and lifelong friendships. I was eager to pour back into this community by stepping into leadership roles. As the Mentorship Director for the MSBS and Master of Science in Biomedical Data Science and AI programs, I designed initiatives to connect incoming students with peers to ease their transition into graduate school. Additionally, I served as the Social and Mentorship Chair for the Women in Science club, facilitating community-building events both within Mount Sinai and across neighboring New York City institutions. My passion also extended to the First-Generation Scholars program, where I mentored local high school students navigating the college application process. Ultimately, Mount Sinai’s unique balance of high-impact science and dedicated community advocacy is what makes its programs so profoundly strong.

How else did you excel at Mount Sinai?

My two years of dedicated research ultimately culminated in receiving the Award for Scientific Excellence within the biomedical science cohort. Furthermore, I had the distinct honor of being selected as the commencement speaker, where I had the privilege of representing the graduating Class of 2026.

What’s Next?

While my immediate next step is to secure an associate research scientist position, my long-term goal is to return to graduate school within a few years to pursue a PhD in Neuroscience. Ultimately, I want to dedicate my career to investigating neurodegenerative diseases, focusing on basic science research with a strong emphasis on translational applications.

Rohitha Ravisekar, MBBS, MHA, MS, is a physician and health care administrator from India, with expertise in patient care, disease diagnosis and management, health care quality, patient safety, and hospital administration.  

However, she wanted to know more—much more—about the environmental, social, and systemic forces that can shape individual health outcomes. In the following Q&A, Dr. Ravisekar discusses how Mount Sinai’s Master of Science in Epidemiology program has given her the tools she needs to improve health at the population level.

You have accomplished much in your career. What is your background?
Most recently, I worked in a dual capacity as a clinician and quality manager, leading patient management, quality improvement initiatives, and accreditation efforts. I also worked as a research consultant with a firm that delves into data-driven health care analytics projects. However, I have become increasingly interested in the larger factors that influence health long before patients enter the health care system.

What first attracted you to medicine and epidemiology?
As a child, I was fascinated by blood. When I or someone got hurt, instead of only sympathizing, I would be immediately engaged in how to stop it, and I would ask a lot of questions.

It was a curiosity that would eventually grow into a deeper interest in how the human body works and led me to get a medical degree. Years later, while working in a community hospital, I began to realize that many of the factors influencing health exist long before a patient ever enters a hospital, and that environmental, social, and systemic forces shape health outcomes. Epidemiology gave me the tools to explore these bigger questions and understand health beyond the “one patient” approach. I became focused on improving health at the population level.

Who were your Mount Sinai mentors, and what are some of your research highlights?
I was quite fortunate to have outstanding mentors. My faculty advisor, Vishal Midya, PhD, introduced me to a fascinating way of thinking about health through the lens of the exposome and elemental biodynamics. Working with him was akin to learning a new language, one spoken by code, metals, and time. I am also incredibly grateful for the guidance of Francheska Merced-Nieves, PhD, Program Director, MS in Epidemiology, who somehow always seemed to have the answer to whatever question I was about to ask next. Apart from faculty, the program manager and several student mentors helped me successfully navigate the program, manage expectations, and answer the many questions I had being an international student entering a new field. My research is essentially centered around outcomes associated with elemental biodynamics, more specifically how the elemental signatures preserved in children’s teeth can provide clues about dynamic patterns of metal uptake and metabolism during critical developmental windows. Using advanced statistical and machine learning methods, my work aims to establish their relationship to future health outcomes.

Why Mount Sinai—what, specifically, are the strong points of this program?
New York City has some of the world’s leading centers for health care, biomedical research, public health innovation, and scientific collaboration. There is an unparalleled environment for learning, discovery, and application. Mount Sinai sits at the heart of that ecosystem. One of the program’s greatest strengths is its integration within a state-of-the-art academic medical center where research questions arise directly from real-world clinical and public health challenges. The MS in Epidemiology program combines rigorous epidemiologic training with access to exceptional faculty, groundbreaking research, and opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration. Students are encouraged to think beyond traditional boundaries and apply epidemiologic methods to complex health problems. Being able to learn in an environment where scientific discovery, patient care, and public health intersect every day makes Mount Sinai an ideal place for training.

How else did you excel at Mount Sinai?
I participated in a variety of activities, including a community walk and community health screening events, and I supported conferences and academic events as a volunteer. I was part of the Students for Equal Opportunity in Science peer mentorship program, which allowed me to connect with fellow students and mentors, share experiences, and help build a supportive learning environment. I also enjoyed participating in cultural and community activities that brought together students from diverse backgrounds.  These experiences helped me build friendships, strengthen my leadership and communication skills, and reminded me that graduate school offers students opportunities that extend beyond academic courses.

What’s Next?

I want to build a career at the intersection of epidemiology, environmental health, and health care improvement, with a particular focus on translating research findings into meaningful changes in clinical care. I am especially interested in risk prediction and identifying early life factors that can help detect disease before symptoms emerge. Long term, I would like to work with organizations that operate on a global scale, where research can inform policies, programs, and clinical practices that improve health outcomes across populations. Whether through research, implementation, or education, my goal is to ensure that scientific discoveries do not remain in journals but ultimately reach the patients and communities they are meant to serve. And, as I continue to pursue new avenues, I want to remain grateful for my children, family, friends, and mentors for their continued support and encouragement. I could not have done any of this without them.

After earning her bachelor’s degree from Cornell University, Taylor Ward, MSCR, came to Mount Sinai’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences with a dual passion for nutrition and health equity. As a student in the Master of Science in Clinical Research program, she conducted cardiovascular disparities research, working directly with cardiology patients, and developing Soulfully Nutritious, a culturally responsive nutrition education framework designed to help adults living with cardiomyopathy make sustainable dietary changes while honoring their cultural food traditions. Her work bridges clinical research, community engagement, and patient education, earning her Mount Sinai’s 2026 Commencement Award for Community Service and Engagement in Clinical Research.

In the following Q&A, Ms. Ward discusses what she has learned, the mentors who shaped her experience, and her vision for advancing cardiovascular health through research, education, and community partnership.

What is your background?

I developed a strong interest in nutrition, health equity, and community-based research at Cornell University, and my experiences there helped me understand that health outcomes are influenced not only by biology, but also by access to resources, education, culture, and the broader social determinants of health. That foundation led me to Mount Sinai’s Master of Science in Clinical Research program where I focused on cardiovascular health disparities, clinical research, and community engagement, with a particular interest in improving outcomes for historically underserved populations. My work has allowed me to combine research, patient-centered care, and health education in ways that directly benefit the communities most affected by cardiovascular disease.

What first attracted you to this field?

I wanted to better understand why some communities experience worse health outcomes than others. As I learned more about nutrition and cardiovascular disease, I became increasingly interested in the social, cultural, and environmental factors that shape health long before someone enters a hospital or clinic. Cardiovascular disease has a profound impact on individuals, families, and communities. I wanted to contribute to work that not only advances our understanding of disease, but also improves patient care and helps people take an active role in their health.

Who were your mentors and what are some of your research highlights?

I had the privilege of working with two exceptional Mount Sinai mentors: Janice L. Gabrilove, MD, Director of the Clinical Research Education Program, and Icilma V. Fergus, MD, Director of Cardiovascular Disparities at Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital. Dr. Gabrilove’s leadership in clinical and translational research helped shape my understanding of how rigorous study design and scientific inquiry can ultimately improve patient care. Under her guidance, I developed the skills needed to transform a research question into a meaningful and impactful clinical research project. Working with Dr. Fergus allowed me to explore the intersection of cardiovascular medicine, health equity, and community engagement. As a nationally recognized leader in cardiovascular disparities research, she inspired me to think beyond traditional clinical outcomes and consider how cultural, social, and structural factors shape cardiovascular health. Her mentorship helped shape both my research interests and my commitment to reducing health disparities in underserved communities.

With their guidance, I developed my master’s thesis, Soulfully Nutritious, which investigates culturally tailored nutrition education as a strategy for improving cardiovascular self-management among adults living with nonischemic cardiomyopathies, including transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis. The project integrates cardiovascular medicine, nutrition science, and community-based health education to address disparities in cardiovascular outcomes. It emphasizes culturally responsive nutrition education that supports sustainable dietary changes while preserving cultural food traditions.

The project integrates cardiovascular medicine, nutrition science, and community-based health education to address disparities in cardiovascular outcomes. It emphasizes culturally responsive nutrition education that supports sustainable dietary changes while preserving cultural food traditions. Beyond developing the framework, I conducted community health seminars and educational initiatives designed to improve cardiovascular health literacy and bridge the gap among evidence-based medicine and real-world patient experiences. That experience reinforced my belief that research is most impactful when it extends beyond academic settings and directly benefits the communities it seeks to serve.

Night sweats. Hot flashes. These are the symptoms that most women associate with menopause. However, many women experience these—and other symptoms that they may not recognize as related to menopause—for as many as 10 years before the onset of menopause.

In this Q&A, Kumi Yuki, MD, Director of Mount Sinai’s Virtual Primary Care for Menopause, discusses what you should know and what you can do about symptoms related to perimenopause—the time before menopause.

“It’s important for women to educate themselves about perimenopause. But it’s equally important to make sure that your sources of information are reputable,” Dr. Yuki says. “Social media and word of mouth may not be your best sources of information. Whenever you are going through something you don’t understand, it’s best to speak with your doctor.”

What should women know about perimenopause?

There is an interesting recent study that highlights the fact that many women don’t associate the symptoms they are experiencing as part of perimenopause. While physical changes such as hot flashes, weight gain, and sleep disturbances are widely recognized, other prevalent symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, mood swings, and anxiety often go overlooked.

Kumi Yuki, MD

Women in their 40s and 50s often don’t know what’s going on with their bodies because no one teaches them “this is menopause.” In a sense, it’s like having their first menstrual period, because their body is going through a change for the first time that they have never experienced. And if women are still having their period, they may not associate these symptoms with the gradual changes of perimenopause. It is essential that we address this knowledge gap through targeted education to empower women and promote their overall wellness during this transition.

What are some common symptoms of perimenopause that women might overlook?

There are a number of symptoms, including:

• Pain during sexual intercourse and vaginal dryness
• Joint pain and fatigue
• Brain fog, irritability, mood changes, and anxiety

Women may not realize that this transition into menopause affects the whole body—and mind. Many women may experience symptoms and not associate them with a transition their body is going through. Sometimes, these mood changes may occur around the menstrual cycle and may make it easier to realize the cause, but not always. Many women may not seek treatment and try to push through on their own.

Why is virtual care for perimenopause a good option?

Virtual primary care for menopause increases access and convenience. Often, same-day appointments are available, whereas that’s usually not possible with a gynecologist. If a patient has questions about the way they are feeling, or has basic questions about perimenopause, virtual care provides a great entry point for care. A patient can test the waters, find out options for evaluation and treatment, and start their personal path to managing their symptoms. If a case is more complex, they can see their gynecologist for in-person care. No matter what you are feeling, it is always good to talk to a health care professional because there are options for care.