News from the School of Public Health

At the end of his father’s life in 2020, Taha Nasir found himself spending unending hours in the hospital surrounded by the complexity of the healthcare system. That difficult time shaped a new career goal for Nasir: to work on improving healthcare systems by joining his two passions,  business and health,  into a career in healthcare management.

Jodi Hammer, director of the University Career Center at the School of Public Health, has decades of wisdom when it comes to supporting students in their career journeys. Whether you’re a freshman just starting out or a senior looking at career options, follow Hammer’s five recommendations below to get you closer to the job you seek.

For Susan Topping, pursuing a master’s degree was a long-held dream – but only a dream. She didn't think she could afford it while she and her wife tried to save for their children’s education. Topping also worried that pursuing this degree would simply pull her attention away from her family. 

Charles “Peewee” Hall III pauses, a pair of buzzing clippers in one hand, his other tilting his customer’s head to the correct angle. 

“It’s just a good idea,” he shrugs. “I want to make sure the youth, the adults and especially the parents who sit in this chair and get their hair cut, get the message about cannabis.” 

Going to prison or even just getting arrested negatively affects a person’s health long after the experience, worsening age-related health problems such as chronic pain, sleep quality and memory.

The best collaborations sometimes start by accident—and the strongest ones end with new friendships. Professor Kerry W. Tripp, who teaches family public health and law at University of Maryland's School of Public Health, created a Global Classrooms partnership that connects students across languages and hemispheres—and it all began with a single call to a professor she’d never met.