Cohort 7 (2025) of our Global Health Scholarly Concentration

Mary Jae was raised in Cary, North Carolina and obtained her undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences with a concentration in Human Biology from North Carolina State University in 2022. She took a gap year in the Philippines, where she volunteered for the youth communities residing in one of the largest slums of Cebu with an organization called “Atong Gugma Alang sa Kabataan” (Our Love is for the Youth). This experience became the impetus for her interest in global health as she learned about the shortcomings of the public healthcare system in indigent communities and underserved areas. She has participated in several medical mission trips with Cebu Doctors’ University Hospital, in partnership with the Sui Generis Mission, and became actively involved in helping physicians provide medical services, such as surgical and ophthalmologic services, to communities in need, such as in San Vicente, Palawan, Aklan, and Bohol. She has also led wellness workshops to educate underserved youth in the Philippines about adequate hygiene practices during her role as Miss Philippines USA 2023.

Aisha’s path to global health was shaped in the quiet moments of service – preparing meals with her mother for newly arrived refugees, guiding immigrant families through unfamiliar systems, and witnessing the resilience of those rebuilding their lives. These early experiences taught her that health is not confined to physical well-being but is deeply intertwined with social, cultural, and economic contexts. This understanding fueled her desire to work with global populations, where inequities often contribute to complex health challenges that demand thoughtful, multidisciplinary solutions.

As an International Studies and Genetics major at NC State University, Aisha explored the intersections of human rights, social justice, and health policy. Her studies led her to the Zaatari Refugee Camp in north Jordan, where she interned with the Jordan Health Aid Society (JHAS). Stationed in the Women and Girls Comprehensive Center, Aisha conducted research on the rapid transition of family planning services to a remote model during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her research contributed to JHAS’s efforts to secure funding from the United Nations Population Fund to optimize the family planning service supply chain. Additionally, she had the opportunity to work alongside physicians across pediatrics, gynecology, and labor and delivery, gaining insight into the complex healthcare needs of refugee populations and the challenges of providing continuity of care during the emergency, post-emergency, and resettlement stages of humanitarian crises.

Through the Scholarly Concentration in Global Health, Aisha aims to further her understanding of sustainable, equity-driven healthcare models. She aspires to be a globally-minded physician because she recognizes and values the collaborative, reciprocal learning that occurs when innovation and expertise are exchanged. By staying connected to the realities of the communities she serves, she hopes to be better prepared to advocate for her patients’ needs and work toward more equitable healthcare outcomes as a physician.

Originally from South Africa, Megan immigrated to the United States at the age of ten. Throughout her childhood, she witnessed the repercussions of an inaccessible healthcare system, perpetuated by corruption and reinforced by the world’s largest income inequality. Having lost members of her community to conditions such as HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis, Megan has understood from a young age the impact of systemic inequities and biases that disproportionately affect race, gender, socioeconomic status, and ethnicity.

Megan began her academic journey at Clemson University, where she majored in French and International Health. Although she was passionate about pursuing an interdisciplinary career as a physician, it wasn’t until her junior year when she took a Global Health course that her interest in supporting marginalized populations, advocating for health policy, and engaging in international aid work was fully realized. During this course, her class read Mountains Beyond Mountains, where she found inspiration in the work of Dr. Paul Farmer. This led her to pursue an internship with Clemson Engineers for Developing Communities, where she helped develop a more sustainable data collection system for managing hypertension in the Central Plateau of Haiti.

As a physician, Megan hopes to collaborate with organizations such as the UN, WHO, and the World Food Programme to promote ethical, inclusive, and sustainable healthcare within the field of Global Health.