Dr. Sumit Garg, BSPH '24

Preferred Name: Dr. Sumit Garg
School and Major: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Masters in Public Health (Summer 2023).
Estimated Graduation Date: 22nd May, 2024

Can you discuss your work as a physician in India turned public servant?
I finished my medical school in 2007 and then joined the Ministry of Finance in the Government of India in 2010. I then worked for 10 years in customs & international trade implementation, anti-fraud investigations, tax policy and research unit etc. In early 2020 I was deputed to the Department of Pharmaceuticals where I was responsible for administering various policy interventions for promoting the growth of pharmaceuticals and medical devices industry in India. I was also responsible for international collaboration for this sector and was part of the G-20 health track team under the G-20 presidency held by India in 2023. During COVID-19, a lot of coordination with manufacturers and the national drug regulator was done for upscaling the production of vaccines and drugs for COVID-19. In 2023, I decided to take a sabbatical and pursue Masters in Public Health. I was lucky to get into Johns Hopkins University on a World Bank scholarship.

Why did you choose JHU, and what’s next for you?
I chose Johns Hopkins because of two reasons. One, its public health school is undoubtedly best in the world. Second, the World Bank scholarship was available only for this school among the schools I had applied for in the US. It would have been hard for me to join the school without a generous scholarship offered under the Joint Japan World bank Graduate scholarship program. After completion of MPH, I will join back my position in the Government of India.

What skills are you learning at Hopkins that will be of value your whole life?
Hopkins offers a very rich and diverse academic environment. It has an amazing offerings on number of courses. I have chosen to concentrate in health systems and policy. Alongside, I am also doing a certificate program in vaccine science and policy. Policy formulation and analysis is one skill I am learning which includes specific stream of vaccine science as well. 

What unique experiences or achievements have shaped your educational journey so far?
The unique blend of being a physician and a tax person and then again joining public health program here at Hopkins is what I believe has shaped my journey so far. In 2022, I was selected by the WTO secretariat for a training program in Trade and Public Health, a program delivered by WTO in Geneva in close coordination with WHO and WIPO. This training perfectly aligned with my professional experience in my field. At Hopkins, I was fortunate to get selected for conducting a field study to practice my public health skills in India during December/January 2023. Latest news is that I have was selected, as a team, for the Henrietta Lacks health equity case competition which was hosted by Michigan Ross school of business on 17th Feb, 2024. So, I would say that my professional and education journey has progressed side by side. 

Are there any professors that have made a lasting impact on you?
There are few of them: Dr. Marie Diener-West, Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, Dr. Ruth Karron.