PhD Epidemiology Alumni

Barrett Montgomery, PhD in Epidemiology 2022

I absolutely loved getting my PhD in Epidemiology at Michigan State University. Years of limitless intellectual freedom, a cohort of colleagues who enjoyed the same, and the mentorship of a faculty of experts who are as passionate about your success as they are about their own research made for a life changing experience. The collegiality between the staff, faculty, and students made for a welcoming atmosphere that is a rare and deeply underappreciated factor that prospective students should consider when applying to PhD programs. The coursework and mentorship from the faculty taught me so much about how to approach complex problems as a scientist and allowed me to develop my own program of research, resulting in a dissertation that I felt great about.

After finishing my PhD, I began my career at RTI International where I work as a lead epidemiologist with the Substance Use Prevention, Evaluation, and Research team to evaluate state and federal efforts to prevent drug use and improve epidemiologic surveillance of alcohol and drug use.