Sample essay for postgraduate application 1

Royal Veterinary College - MSc in One Health: ecosystems, humans and animals (1000 words)

…explaining why you would like to do the course and outlining your relevant skills and experiences -

• Why do you want to study the course and how will it benefit you?
• What qualities, including soft skills, can you bring to the course or how does the course suit your current skill set? 
• Why the RVC?
• What aspirations do you have for the future?
• How will your studies contribute to the College, your professional field and/or wider society?

Everyone has that “ah-ah” moment that allows you to see a situation from a better perspective and takes away the fog that once clouded one’s vision. My first Veterinary Public Health class in my fifth year of university was my big “ah-ah” moment. I could not expressly decide if I had found my passion, but I knew I had found something that resonated with me. Using a social science approach to study traditional science was what tickled my fancy in that class. That day, I began my public health journey and what would evolve to become my One Health story.

Upon graduation from veterinary school, I decided to intern with a public health organization on weekdays and work as a veterinary clinician only on weekends. My choice to work with a public health organization places me in a new, but growing category of modern veterinary clinicians who are applying our skills across varied, but interrelated disciplines within public health. My graduate internship at Dr Ameyo Stella Adadevoh (DRASA) Health Trust sparked my interest in the interconnectivity between humans, animals and the environment in the public health space. One of my responsibilities was to manage the social media pages, including reading a variety of articles for content on social media. I was pleasantly surprised to see how public health was always being viewed from the medical, veterinary and ecological lenses. On one of such occasions, I created content for the World Antibiotics Awareness Week - using the One Health approach to explain how indiscriminate use of antibiotics in animals can lead to antibiotic resistance in man. This further corroborated my decision to work in a public health space post-graduation. The initial plan was to be able to bridge the gap between my veterinary skills and the public health sector, but I discovered there was really no gap to bridge. There is already an invaluable role I can play as a veterinarian. 

As a graduate intern, I was supervised by the Programs Coordinator, an Environmental Health specialist who introduced me to data entry and analysis using Epidata. Though I had been exposed to some epidemiological software such as EpiInfo, OpenEpi and WinEpi during one of my Veterinary Public Health modules, it was nothing compared to actually having data to enter and analyse. In a bid to add more capacity to my public health journey, I took a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) in Systems Thinking in Public Health offered by Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University. This certificate course revealed the importance of having proper systems backing up any stakeholders’ approach to solving a health issue. One of my favourite topics is the Public Health Triumvirate which emphasizes the roles to be played by the technocrats, the decision-makers and the civic leaders. 

While learning on the job, polishing my communication, negotiation and lobbying skills has been one of my greatest feats. For instance, we attend many social events and I have seen partnerships with individuals and organizations being conceived at such events. The ability to initiate and sustain those relationships is a skill I have acquired. In addition, I manage two volunteer trainers working with the organization, and this includes working as a team while instructing, supervising and correcting them. Honing these skills have built my confidence that I can work effectively with other graduate students and faculty members in a diverse environment.

To accelerate my vision to become an expert in One Health, I decided to pursue further studies. I am excited to apply to the Royal Veterinary College’s Masters of Science in One Health because of how your course embraces the One Health approach as well as your renowned reputation for world-class research. Admission to the Royal Veterinary College would afford me the benefit of furthering my education within a veterinary environment. The integration of animals with the ecosystem and human health into one holistic course taught in the largest and oldest vet school in the world drives home the strong point that globally, the need to collaborate across disciplines to achieve public health is being recognized. Additionally, it is a joint course in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, an institution distinguished for its potentials of shaping health policy and translating research findings into tangible impact. I really value the fact that RVC has a diversity of students who come together from countries all over the world to the United Kingdom (UK) towards a common goal of protecting public health. The UK is esteemed for her international diversity. The UK Higher Education Statistical Agency (HESA) says that a total of 442,375 non-UK students were studying in the UK in 2016/2017, of which 42% are postgraduate students from outside the European Union (EU)1. Nigeria is even ranked 6th place in the top ten non-EU countries with 12,665 students studying in the UK1. Learning in such a diverse environment is sure to broaden my horizons and also help me build meaningful and lasting global relationships.

Upon completion of my Masters degree, I will share my experience, skills and knowledge gained from my time in the RVC with my veterinarian colleagues to help them understand the crucial role we can play in achieving a healthy world. Though the One Health concept is still an undefined grey area in Nigeria, it is gradually gaining popularity. Veterinarians in Nigeria are becoming more proactive in contributing to the health sector for the overall good of the nation. For example, one of the largest public health projects in Nigeria, the Regional Disease Surveillance Systems Enhancement, has members from the Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association on both its technical and steering committees. This means it is the perfect time for myself and my colleagues to step in and help shape the future of One Health in Nigeria. Learning at RVC will make me a step closer to achieving this. 

I aspire to be one of the drivers of positive change in public health, not just at the local level, but internationally. I intend to contribute my quota to a world structured on a health system that works which will be as a result of the collaboration of different walks of life working together in achieving the common objective of global health. I see myself speaking from a level of in-depth understanding of not just ecosystems, humans and animals and how connected they are, but also the economics of infectious diseases, to make informed decisions at high-level meetings on health at the United Nations or even the World Health Organization. 

Reference

1. UK Higher Education Statistical Agency (HESA) website