Alumni Statements

Statements from some of our alumni about the HBR program:

Why I Joined the Doctoral Program in Health Behavior Research

I chose the HBR program at USC because I wanted to be able to integrate a variety of health-related disciplines, and not constrain myself to a single field. This program was superior to others I considered because it combined top-quality education in public health, epidemiology, psychology, communication, statistics, cultural studies and medicine. Because of the training I received at IPR, there were many opportunities to assume a leadership position in various settings upon graduation, including academia, private industry, pharmaceutical companies, HMO's, and non-profit organizations.

Dennis Trinidad
2002 Graduate
Assistant Professor
Department of Preventive Medicine
Keck School of Medicine
University of Southern California

What I Gained from the Doctoral Program in Health Behavior Research

The training I received at IPR was the best type of training I could have received for the type of work I've always wanted to do, HIV prevention. In the real world, HIV/AIDS is much more than just a disease; there are myriad aspects of this disease (intrapersonal, social, cultural, public health, political) that need to be addressed simultaneously in order to fight the epidemic at both the domestic and global levels. The interdisciplinary training I received at IPR has enabled me to examine the epidemic from all of these vantage points and to think about disease prevention from a "big picture" perspective. Additionally, the very "hands on" approach to learning about behavioral and biomedical research gave me an advantage in that I know what is involved in designing and implementing research projects, from the development of the initial concept to analyzing the data and writing up the results of the study for publication. This sort of breadth of expertise is extremely important in the work I am currently doing. In many ways, I don't think I'd be as effective in my work if I didn't have this level and this quality of training.

Monica Ruiz, PhD
Deputy Director for Public Policy
American Foundation for AIDS Research
Washington, DC.

The in-depth and broad training I received at IPR was cutting-edge and has given me an advantage in the increasingly complex and competitive field of research in which I am now involved. I was fortunate to be mentored by faculty members at IPR who bring together a
broad spectrum of expertise in behavioral and preventive medicine, community-based interventions, psychometrics and biostatistics, and nutritional, cardiovascular and cancer epidemiology. The extensive and focused research experience I gained as a research assistant has served me extremely well through my post-graduate fellowship and residency training, and now in my growth and transition to becoming an independent researcher in a top-notch medical institution. My five-year training at IPR has undoubtedly carried a lot of weight in my career development, and has carried me very far. I am sure it will carry me even further in my career pursuit as a cancer epidemiologist.

Li Li, M.D., Ph.D., MPH
Assistant Professor of Family Medicine, Epidemiology & Biostatistics
Department of Family Medicine & Ireland Cancer Center
Acting Associate Director, Cancer Prevention and Control Program, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center
Case Western Reserve University/University Hospitals of Cleveland

My training at IPR was the state-of-the-art in health behavior and disease
prevention research. From the application of innovative interventions to
the use of modern statistical analytic methods, I believe my training at IPR has put me ahead of the curve and has given me a completive advantage in an increasingly complex scientific world of multidisciplinary research. My mentors were the best in their field and challenged and encouraged me to think critically and simultaneously "outside the box". Since my graduation in 1995, I have enjoyed a productive professional research career and have gone up for tenure this year – I attribute this in large part to the personalized and careful training I received at IPR.

Ray Palmer, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Family and Community Medicine
University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio

The PhD in Preventive Medicine program at USC is timely and unique. As medicine and public health converge, the importance of preventive medicine as a cost-effective way to promote health and prevent or delay the onset of diseases becomes apparent and more and more recognized. The PhD program trains students to become independent health researchers by equipping them with rigorous research skills that are applicable to a broad range of health issues. Students have great flexibility in defining their research interests and topics. In addition, the skill-oriented approach allows students to be marketable in a wide range of job sectors, including private consulting, pharmaceutical, academia, and governmental and non-governmental agencies. The strong research skills I learned have been crucial in my marketability post-graduation.

Terry T-K Huang, PhD, MPH
Health Scientist Administrator
Endocrinology, Nutrition, and Growth Branch
NICHD Center for Research for Mothers and Children
National Institutes of Health (NIH)