The Jackson School recently spoke with Doyeon Park, a second-year Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) student in Epidemiology at the School of Public Health. Park, a Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellow (Academic Year 2023-2024 and 2024-2025) in Chinese from the East Asia Center shared the ways she’s been using her award to integrate language skills with her studies on the global health challenges in East Asia.
Courtesy of Doyeon Park
What is your research/academic background and how did you first learn about FLAS?
I’m a second-year Epidemiology M.P.H. student with a strong interest in infectious diseases and One Health. My academic and research work focuses on infectious disease modeling and the effect of long COVID-19 on U.S. veterans. I first learned about the FLAS fellowship through my husband, Daniel Hance, who was pursuing an M.A. in Japan Studies at the University of Washington.
What motivated you to apply for FLAS and how did you think it would help you in your professional journey?
I have degrees in science fields and have always been interested in East Asia, where I’m from, and I’m fluent in both Korean and Japanese. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, I wasn’t sure how I could connect my language skills and interest in East Asia with my academic background. However, after the pandemic began, East Asia faced significant public health and epidemiological challenges. This made me realize that my language skills, interest in the region, and background in infectious diseases could be valuable for preparing the U.S. and the rest of world for future epidemics and pandemics like COVID-19. Since I’m already fluent in Korean and Japanese, I believed that learning Chinese, along with studying public health and epidemiological issues in East Asia, would greatly benefit my career. Applying for the FLAS fellowship seemed like the perfect opportunity to build on my skills and prepare for my future professional journey.
Some people might think FLAS is only for Jackson School students. What would you say to those who are under the impression that FLAS isn’t for them?
I can see why people might think that FLAS is only for Jackson School students. However, FLAS fellowship is open to students across all disciplines. As an Epidemiology M.P.H. student focusing on infectious diseases, I’ve found the East Asia Center and UW FLAS team to be incredibly helpful and supportive. Rita Bashaw, the FLAS coordinator, and the East Asia Center have worked hard to help me combine my major classes and research interests with area studies courses. Additionally, my Chinese language professors and professors in the UW School of Public Health have been very supportive in helping me meet FLAS requirements while aligning my studies with my academic interests. Their guidance has made it possible for me to connect my passion for East Asia with my work in public health.
If you’re passionate about your field and want to integrate regional knowledge and language learning, the FLAS fellowship is an incredible opportunity. The fellowship and the UW FLAS team will work with you to ensure your studies reflect your goals. For me, connecting my public health research with Chinese language skills and East Asia studies has opened up new possibilities for understanding and addressing global challenges in infectious diseases. If you have a clear vision and passion, the FLAS committee can help you take your work to the next level.
How do you think FLAS can enrich the educational goals of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) students?
The FLAS fellowship is a great opportunity for STEM students because it allows them to integrate language skills and regional knowledge into their technical expertise. Addressing complex issues like infectious diseases, climate change, or technological innovation requires collaboration across organizations and countries. Language skills and regional knowledge enable STEM students to work effectively in international settings, communicate with diverse stakeholders, and understand cultural contexts that shape scientific and technological challenges. For me, as an Epidemiology M.P.H. student focusing on infectious diseases, the FLAS fellowship has allowed me to learn Chinese while exploring public health and epidemiological issues in East Asia. I believe this experience enhances my ability to collaborate with researchers, public health professionals, and policymakers in the region in the future. I think the FLAS fellowship can help STEM students become not just experts in their fields, but also global professionals who can address challenges on an international scale.
What would you say has been the most rewarding aspect of your FLAS fellowship?
The most rewarding aspect of my FLAS fellowship has been the significant improvement in my Chinese language skills and the deeper understanding I’ve gained about public health and epidemiological issues in East Asia. My language learning has progressed to the point where I can now read Chinese characters on streets and menus, pick up words from conversations between Chinese speakers, and even read some titles and sentences in Chinese articles and scientific journals. These small but meaningful milestones have been incredibly motivating. In addition to language skills, I’ve learned so much about public health and epidemiological issues in East Asia that I wasn’t aware of, even when I lived in the region. The FLAS fellowship has helped me understand how regional contexts influence public health challenges and responses. It has also helped me connect my interest in infectious diseases with the cultural, political, and social aspects of health in East Asia. I recently took a disease modeling class and incorporated an East Asian focus to align with my area studies. For my final project, I explored the effect of HPV vaccination coverage on HPV prevalence and cervical cancer incidence in Japan. Using my language skills and understanding of the cultural context, I was able to build a disease model and simulate the effect of different vaccination coverage scenarios on these health outcomes over a 70-year period. This project was a rewarding experience because it allowed me to apply both my technical skills in modeling and my regional knowledge to address a significant public health issue.
How has FLAS influenced your career goals?
I never thought I could connect my academic background in infectious diseases with my interest in East Asia and languages. The FLAS fellowship has shown me that these passions can come together in impactful ways. It has inspired me to pursue a career in federal organizations or international agencies where I can leverage my language skills and regional knowledge to collaborate with stakeholders in global settings. By combining my background in infectious disease research with my understanding of the cultural and social contexts of the region, I hope to contribute to global public health efforts, particularly in preparing for and responding to epidemics and pandemics. FLAS has helped me realize that this interdisciplinary approach is not only possible, but also essential for addressing international health challenges.
Anything else you’d like readers to know?
If you’re a STEM major, it can definitely be challenging to take language and area studies classes on top of an already rigorous academic program. However, if you’re passionate about learning about a region and its language, it’s an incredibly rewarding experience that will help you grow both in your major field and in your area studies. I’ve sometimes found it difficult to connect my major classes to my area studies focus, like framing projects or research topics around a specific region. However, I want you to know that there are always people who are willing to help you integrate your regional interests into your major or research. If you’re open to exploring this path, it can truly shape your academic and professional journey in ways you might not have thought possible.
FLAS Fellowships at the University of Washington are open to undergraduate and graduate students and are administered by the Canadian Studies Center, the East Asia Center, the South Asia Center, and the Center for Southeast Asia and its Diasporas. Fifteen languages are eligible for fellowship awards in the current application cycle. Apply by Jan. 31, 2025 for a FLAS fellowship for Summer 2025 and AY 2025-26. Fellowship amounts total up to $8,500 for summer awards and up to $15,000 (undergraduate) or $38,000 (graduate) for academic year awards. The U.S. Department of Education FLAS fellowships program is funded under Title VI of the Higher Education Act. Want to learn more about FLAS at the UW? Email flas@uw.edu.
