A Medical Professional’s Journey to an MPH Program

Alondra finished Medical School in 2018 at Universidad Autónoma de Baja California in Tijuana, Mexico and is now a part of San Diego State University’s online Masters of Public Health program. After planning to obtain her “Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates” certification to apply to a residency program here in the United States, Alondra went through a series of positions that acquainted her with the U.S. healthcare system. She soon realized the importance of public health and the role it played in patient outcomes and became motivated to enroll in SDSU’s online MPH program. She appreciates the online component as it has allowed her to work through the program mostly at her own pace. She credits the program for having provided her with a solid network of public health professionals that have fostered her interests and passion for public health.

Her current research interest is in pediatrics as she is an advocate for healthy development and fervently believes that many, if not all, chronic diseases predominant in today’s adult population could be targeted for prevention at earlier stages in life. Furthermore, she is also interested in nutrition and how the COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized the importance of mental health and social support programs.

Alondra is currently working on implementing a childhood obesity program based on a care management support system. The program is funded for 5 years and she will be working on publishing her results afterwards. As part of this program, she supports parents of morbidly obese children with developmental delay or behavioral health conditions.

Alondra’s interests outside of public health include playing music on the piano, violin, and cello. She also enjoys being out in nature.