Public health PhD focuses on how everyday environmental exposures affect metabolic and reproductive health

Body

When doctoral student Rooshna Mohsin arrived at George Mason University from New Jersey, she came with a clear purpose: to deepen her research in environmental and reproductive health and work alongside faculty whose scholarship aligned with her own ambitions. What she found at George Mason was more than an academic opportunity-it was a community that helped shape her into the researcher she is today.

Before coming to George Mason, Mohsin completed a master of public health in epidemiology from Rutgers University and a bachelor of science in biology from the College of New Jersey.

Graduating with her PhD in public health with a concentration in epidemiology this May, Mohsin has spent her time at George Mason exploring how everyday environmental exposures affect metabolic and reproductive health. Her dissertation, Dietary and Social Predictors of PFAS Exposure and Metabolic Health in Hispanic Children, focused on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of widely used synthetic chemicals linked to health concerns. She has also examined trace element exposures in IVF populations.

Rooshna Mohsin. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

Across her work, Mohsin has focused on a pressing public health question: How do common environmental chemicals influence health outcomes across the lifespan, from early childhood through the reproductive years?

That work required both scientific rigor and persistence. Designing a dissertation meant identifying research gaps, asking novel questions, and building studies that could contribute something new to the field. "The most challenging experience I had at George Mason was throughout my dissertation process," she said. "It was academically demanding, but it was also incredibly rewarding in terms of the outcomes and the skills I gained."

She credits much of that growth to the mentorship and support she found at the College of Public Health, especially from her advisor, epidemiologist Michael Bloom.

"He really helped shape me and make sure that I excel as a student here and as a future professional and academic," she said.

Under his mentorship, Mohsin pursued opportunities she had never imagined for herself-including presenting her research at a conference in China, an experience she calls one of the highlights of her doctoral journey.

Mohsin also found strength in the community around her. While her concentration was in epidemiology, many members of her cohort studied social and behavioral health. That interdisciplinary environment became one of the most meaningful parts of her experience.

Rooshna Mohsin at the Three Minute Thesis. Photo provided

"My cohort was the rock of my whole degree," she said. "They kept me sane and stable."

Their different research backgrounds pushed Mohsin to think beyond disciplinary boundaries and sharpen one of public health's most important skills: communication. Explaining research to peers outside her specialty helped her become a more effective scholar-one better equipped to translate complex findings for broader audiences.

"I think that's such an important part of research," she said. "We need to communicate our work in a way that people without this background can understand it."

In fact, Mohsin competed in George Mason's annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, a research communication competition for PhD candidates across the university, and took home third place. Competitors are judged on their ability to present the significance of their dissertation or thesis research using a single slide and within a strict three-minute time limit.

That ability to communicate across audiences became one of the accomplishments she is most proud of. Over the course of her doctoral studies, Mohsin presented at conferences, shared her research with more experienced scholars, and grew more confident in her ability to contribute meaningfully to conversations in her field.

Outside the classroom and lab, Mohsin also built connections across the region, including through her role as a public health ambassador for Association of Schools and Programs in Public Health (ASPPH) in Washington, D.C. Those experiences expanded her professional network and reinforced one of the advantages of studying public health in Northern Virginia: access to a dynamic, deeply connected health and policy community.

By the end of her first semester in Virginia, Mohsin said George Mason had already begun to feel like home. What started as a move for academic opportunity became something more lasting-a place defined by mentorship, collaboration, and belonging. "My faculty were very welcoming, and the people in my cohort were just family for me," she said.

As she graduates, Mohsin said becoming a George Mason alum still feels a little surreal. But she leaves with pride in what she has accomplished and gratitude for the people who helped her get there.

"I'm excited to see how I put together these skills and experiences that I've built during my time at Mason," she said, "and be able to bring that into whatever field I go into next."

Spring 2026 Graduation Information

Learn more about the College of Public Health

Related Stories

Topics