Undergraduate: U Oregon
Medical School: Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine
Residency: Brigham & Women's Hospital
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Philomath, OR
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Underserved populations, tropical medicine, medical education
General Interests:
Backpacking, XC skiing, bike commuting, old movies, board games
Why UCLA?
I'm excited to be back on the west coast and can't wait to start working with the UCLA ID faculty who have made such a great impression. The five different clinical sites are very appealing, since they will give exposure to diverse populations and different practice styles, helping to cultivate my own interests and approach. To top it off, California has so much to offer as a state and I'm looking forward to exploring it!
Undergraduate: UC Santa Barbara
Medical School: George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences
Residency: George Washington University
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Thousand Oaks, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Antimicrobial Stewardship, Medical Education, Infection Control, HIV, Global Health
General Interests:
Exercise & fitness, basketball, surfing, world traveling, the Los Angeles Lakers, playing the guitar & drums
Why UCLA?
Los Angeles, CA is home for me and possibly the greatest place to live. However, particularly in this city, UCLA is a desirable place to train due to the Multicampus Program, which allows for several different clinical and academic experiences for trainees. It becomes important to understand the practice of infectious diseases along the spectrum of the academic and community environment. Lastly, the specific concentrations within the Clinical Scholar Track (medical education!) will allow me to focus on the aspects of infectious diseases, which I find the most appealing.
Undergraduate: U Rochester
Medical School: Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at the University at Buffalo
Residency: University of Virginia
Track: Academic Research Track
Hometown: Corning, NY
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Microbiome, immunocompromised and transplant infectious diseases, clinical/translational research, and public health policy
General Interests:
Soccer, basketball, home-brewing, travel, and photography
Why UCLA?
I was immediately drawn to UCLA because of the broad clinical exposure offered through five clinical training sites and the opportunity to work with the diverse patient population of the greater Los Angeles area. The STAR program also offers a unique opportunity to pursue formative research training through a masters program in parallel with a dedicated mentorship team that will allow me to establish a career as an independent clinical and translational researcher. The opportunity to train in a collegial environment where I am able to develop as a clinician and researcher made UCLA a perfect match for me. On top of that, living in one of the most active cities in the United States isn’t a bad backdrop for fellowship, I have always wanted to try surfing and skiing in the same day.
Undergraduate: U Michigan Ann Arbor
Medical School: University of Illinois College of Medicine
Residency: Duke University
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Lambertville, MI
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Global Health, Public Health, TB, Neglected Tropical Diseases
General Interests:
Trivia, Running, Karaoke, Travel, Movies
Why UCLA?
I was excited to train at UCLA due to the breadth of experiences offered by rotations at five different hospitals as well as the supportive faculty. There are excellent global health opportunities and resources to pursue many different interests within infectious diseases. I was also excited to live in LA due to the many exciting recreational options in the city - beaches, mountains, and great food!
Undergraduate: U Georgia
Medical School: Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Residency: Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Atlanta, GA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
General infectious diseases, cardiovascular infections, antibiotic stewardship
General Interests:
Playing bass guitar, going to the gym, drinking craft beer
Why UCLA?
When applying to fellowship I wanted to find a program that had clinical training with a diverse patient population and the opportunity to pursue research. I believe UCLA has that to offer and more. The multiple rotation sites will expose me to a wide scope of pathology and different hospital settings. The resources and support in terms of research here are fantastic as well.
Undergraduate: Cornell U
Medical School: Tulane University School of Medicine
Residency: Columbia University
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Greenville, NY
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Global health / tropical medicine, migrant health, medical education
General Interests:
Reading the classics, globetrotting, working out, attempting to dance salsa, west coast skiing!
Why UCLA?
I found a very strong commitment to mentorship at UCLA. The faculty here are friendly and supportive. I also loved the variety in clinical experiences offered, and the strong focus on global health. And of course LA is a wonderful city to live in!
Undergraduate: Brown
Medical School: UCSF School of Medicine
Residency: UCSF School of Medicine
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Los Gatos, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Antimicrobial Stewardship, HIV
General Interests:
Cooking, eating my way through LA, Video games, NBA basketball
Why UCLA?
While growing up in the Bay Area, Los Angeles was a hated rival. However, since moving here three years ago, I have grown to appreciate the wealth of opportunities LA has to offer, despite the fact that my sports allegiances will forever remain up north. In particular, having the opportunity in residency to train at two of UCLA's affiliated sites has given me a preview into the diverse pathology, unique practice environments, and fantastic faculty and made for an easy decision to stay here to continue my training.
Undergraduate: UC Berkeley
Medical School: UC San Francisco
Residency: Yale – New Haven Hospital
Track: Academic Research Track
Hometown: Woodland, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Sexually transmitted infections, reproductive health, HIV, global health, and implementation science
General Interests:
Running, traveling, food trucks, and bread making
Why UCLA?
UCLA offers a diverse array of clinical and research opportunities, which are enriched by the multi-campus program. As someone who is interested in an academic research career, mentorship opportunities played an important role in my decision. I found UCLA to have fantastic mentors and a great mentorship structure built into the program. Additionally, the STAR program is a unique opportunity for Fellows interested in research careers. Finally, it is great to be back in CA and now I might be in the running for the most UC campuses attended.
Undergraduate: Columbia University
Medical School: New York University School of Medicine
Residency: Washington University in St. Louis
Track: Academic Research – STAR PhD in Health Services
Hometown: Potomac, MD
Current Research:
My research interests are hospital epidemiology, infection control and antibiotic stewardship. As part of a primary care research fellowship administered through the Department of General Internal Medicine, I’ll be examining physician prescribing patterns and factors influencing the use of antibiotics in outpatient medicine clinics. Within our division, I’ll be working with Drs. Rubin and Uslan. Additionally, as part of the resident informaticist program, I am working on a quality improvement project with Dr. Uslan incorporating a display of the cost of antimicrobials into our version of Epic.
Interests:
Tacos, free shows at the Upright Citizens Brigade theater, ultimate frisbee, hiking in the Santa Monica Mountains
Why UCLA?
The STAR program has been extremely flexible in helping me develop a research plan that fits my background and interests. Our faculty are genuinely supportive and fun to be around. As an extra plus, the hospital itself is beautifully designed.
Undergraduate & Graduate School: Indiana University
Medical School: University of California, Los Angeles
Residency: UCLA Medical Center
Track: Academic Researcher Track - Health Policy and Management PhD (STAR)
Hometown: Albuquerque, NM
Academic/Clinical Interests:
HIV prevention, sexually transmitted infections, social and sexual networks, global health
General Interests:
Cooking, traveling, trying out new restaurants, being outdoors
Why UCLA?
Because UCLA is an amazing place! I was drawn to this fellowship program because of the strong clinical training and the wonderful opportunities in research. The multi-campus program also provides a unique opportunity to be exposed to incredibly diverse patient populations and clinical pathology. There is also excellent mentorship and teaching within the division. Furthermore, the support offered by the STAR program is unparalleled in providing fellows a strong foundation for a career in academic research.
Undergraduate: UC Berkeley, Molecular and Cell Biology
Medical School: UCLA
Residency: Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine Primary Care and Social Internal Medicine
Track: Academic Research Track
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
HIV in Women, Global Health, Emerging Epidemics
General Interests:
Photography, film, spending time with my family
Why UCLA?
I chose UCLA for the STAR program: one year of intense clinical training at a world-renowned academic institution, followed by protected research time with support from leaders in the field. As a graduate of UCLA medical school, I can attest to the outstanding mentorship offered by the ID department, and unique opportunities in cutting edge HIV research.
Undergraduate: University of California, Berkeley
Medical School: University of California, San Diego
Residency: UCLA Medical Center
Track: Academic Research Track – STAR Basic Science PhD
Hometown: El Cerrito, CA
Current Research:
What has always amazed me about infectious diseases is the drastically different responses that two patients can have to the same pathogen. These disparate outcomes have everything to do with the host immune system, and our understanding of the immune response to infection is only in its infancy. One key element that has been under-appreciated is the dramatic ways that immune responses are context-dependent. My research focuses on how context affects signal transduction and gene expression: How do infected vs bystander cells respond to the same cytokine? How do macrophages primed by different cytokines respond to the same pathogen-associated stimuli? The answers to these nuanced questions will yield a higher-resolution understanding of immune responses that will be necessary for the development of targeted immunotherapies in the future treatment of infectious diseases. My primary mentor is Alexander Hoffmann, and additional mentors include Otto Yang and Scott Filler.
Interests:
Family: spending time with our two young kids.
Sports: watching all kinds of sports, playing basketball and fantasy football.
Music: I play violin and dabble in guitar, and often play for my church on weekends.
Being outdoors: hiking, running on the beach.
Why UCLA?
The culture, combining quaternary care with collegiality – The patients at UCLA are incredibly complicated, with transfers routinely coming to us from as far as Las Vegas or Northern California; but even in this intense setting, I have consistently found that people enjoy their work and enjoy working with each other. The S.T.A.R. program – Having guaranteed funding and being given the opportunity to pursue a Ph.D. is unbeatable for someone who hopes to have an academic research career. Los Angeles – The diversity of L.A. is incredible. There’s something for everybody here. We’re much more than Hollywood and Disneyland!
Undergraduate: UCLA
Medical School: UCLA
Residency: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Track: Academic Research Track
Hometown: Fountain Valley, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Antimicrobial stewardship, hospital epidemiology
General Interests:
Basketball, kendo, college football, Friends reruns
Why UCLA?
There is really no reason why not. The clinical training is phenomenal and the STAR program allowing me to get dedicated research training while obtaining an MSc is right in line with my career goals. I'm already blessed with great mentorship within the UCLA network and I looks forwards to continue building on what I've accomplished. Most importantly though, I'm a Bruin at heart and LA was too good for me to leave.
Undergraduate & Medical School: Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Tijuana
Residency: Jacobi Medical Center, Bronx, NY
Track: Academic Researcher Track - T32 Global HIV Prevention
Hometown: Tijuana, Mexico
Current Research:
My focus is at the intersection of infectious diseases and addiction to substances. My goal is to understand how addiction leads to infection, and how treating addiction may lead to better outcomes in those infected or preventing infectious diseases in those yet to acquire them. My research mentors are Raphael J Landovitz and Steven Shoptaw.
General Interests:
Cycling, surfing, linoleum carving
Why UCLA?
A great faculty within the Division of Infectious Disease who have proven success in developing trainees with a desire to perform clinical research. During my selection process, I saw in UCLA diverse possibilities for clinical and research mentorship with several faculty members whose interests overlap with mine – and I could see myself working with them. Los Angeles is very close to home for me, has great weather year-round and sunny beaches.
Undergraduate: University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
Medical School: Washington University in St. Louis
Residency: Vanderbilt University
Track: Academic Research Track - STAR MCSR
Hometown: Rochester, MN
General Interests:
Cooking, eating, dogs, drawing, painting, photography, yoga
Current Research:
My research interests have always focused on HIV infection and complications, with previous work on HIV metabolic complications with Drs. Jordan Lake and Todd Hulgan. My focus recently has shifted toward these issues specifically in women and transgender women, specifically in the context of cure. Under the mentorship of Dr. Judy Currier, I’m working on launching a prospective study to compare reservoir and HIV persistence markers in women and transgender women compared to men. I am also currently helping to represent UCLA in two ongoing ACTG studies in HIV cure research, studying
Why UCLA?
The thing that impressed me most about UCLA was the immensely supportive administration and outstanding female mentorship. The new multicampus program promises broad clinical training with a markedly diverse patient population. The atmosphere was happy and collaborative, and I’m excited to be a part of all the great changes underway in the department.
Undergraduate: UCLA
Medical School: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Residency: UCLA
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Alhambra, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Transplant ID, antimicrobial stewardship
General Interests:
New restaurants, movies, working out, travel
Undergraduate: Tufts University
Medical School: University of Connecticut, School of Medicine
Residency: UCLA
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Farmington, CT
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Global Health/Underserved populations, medical education, and public health policy
General Interests:
Traveling, discovering new restaurants, cooking, singing
Undergraduate: Fairfield University
Medical School: St. George's University School of Medicine
Residency: University of Arizona
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Westfield, NJ
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Transplant Infectious Diseases, Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control
General Interests:
Traveling, hiking, soccer, running, or any outdoor activity, trying new and different types of food from around the world
Undergraduate: University of Puget Sound
Medical School: Medical College of Wisconsin
Residency: UCLA Medical Center
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Eureka, California
Academic/Clinical Interests:
HIV and HIV primary care, healthcare for underserved populations, global health.
General Interests:
Running, hiking, biking, tea drinking, visiting my many sisters, skateboarding, and now surfing!
Undergraduate: University of Southern California
Medical School: University of Southern California
Residency: Huntington Memorial Hospital
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Laguna Hills, California
Academic/Clinical Interests:
HIV, Medical Education, Antimicrobial Stewardship
General Interests:
The Lakers, USC sports (Fight on! Should be interesting to see how many friends I make during fellowship), realizing how little I know about childcare (My wife and I have a 4 month old), restaurants, movies
Undergraduate: University of Florida
Medical School: The Commonwealth Medical College
Residency: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Berwyn, PA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Antibiotic Stewardship
General Interests:
Going to the beach, hiking, running, travel
Undergraduate: University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
Medical School: St. George's University, Grenada, West Indies
Residency: Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, New Hampshire
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Global health, international public health, HIV, tuberculosis, tropical diseases, opportunistic infections
General Interests:
Traveling, running, watching movies, going to the beach, swimming, reading & writing, trying out different restaurants, beer and wine tasting
Undergraduate: Drexel University
Medical School: Jefferson Medical College
Residency: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Bellefonte, PA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Global Health, HIV/AIDs, TB, Tropical Medicine, Refugee and Immigrant Health, Health Disparities
General Interests:
Cooking and trying new restaurants, Travel, Performing Arts, Hiking, Yoga
Undergraduate: UCLA
Medical School: UCLA
Residency: UCLA
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Santa Cruz, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Global and local underserved health, tropical medicine, HIV, TB, viral infections
General Interests:
Being outside in the sunshine, hiking, yoga, succulent gardening, traveling
UCLA is an amazing place and the Infectious Disease faculty have made me want to stay again and again since undergrad. The depth of clinical training and faculty knowledge is immense. The cases are complex and regularly necessitate looking for case reports or academic articles to help guide care, as there are not great guidelines for much of what is seen at UCLA. I’m staying at UCLA for fellowship because I feel that this program will provide me with the most in-depth, comprehensive ID training, in a warm and friendly environment, surrounded by fantastic faculty mentors and educators.
Undergraduate: Cornell University,
Graduate: Masters in Public Health - UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Medical School: Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Residency: Olive View UCLA Medical Center
Track: Clinical Scholar Track
Hometown: Tokyo, but my family now lives in Sunnyvale, CA
Academic/Clinical Interests:
Public health- especially regarding health disparities and access to care, LGBT and immigrant health.
General Interests:
I like guessing recipes at restaurants and trying to recreate them at home. I enjoy yoga, spending time with my friends, spoiling my cat Chunky, and traveling when I can.
The UCLA program offers a diverse experience- from working with under-served patients at a county hospital to working with private attendings. I believe I would get a well-rounded training at UCLA since I will see a wide range of infectious conditions at the different hospital. The fellows I met through the clinics were all friendly and knowledgeable as well!
