Imperial College London, 2025-2026

Asmaa is a Palestinian dentist and writer from Gaza. She has previously worked as a general dentist and had volunteered with UNRWA clinics, Jaffa Private Hospital in Deir al-Balah, and the World Food Programme’s nutrition initiative. Her writing has appeared in We Are Not Numbers, ArabLit, Modern Poetry in Translation, Protean Magazine, and Slow Orbit. She is pursuing postgraduate studies in Public Health at Imperial College London, which attracted her because of its global reputation for excellence in public health research, its strong focus on evidence-based practice, and its consistently high international ranking.

Asmaa graduated from Al-Azhar University in Gaza with a Bachelor of Dental Surgery. Her background in dentistry and her experience in Gaza, where she grew up, showed her how strongly health is shaped by access, prevention, and social and political conditions. She hopes that her Public Health studies will allow her to work on addressing health inequities beyond individual clinical care, especially in light of the collapse of the health sector in Gaza.

“My studies in dentistry and my clinical and volunteer work showed me the limits of individual treatment in addressing widespread health problems. These experiences led me to choose a Master of Public Health so I can focus on prevention, health systems, and population level impact.”