Research Intern under the MALADRONE Study Richard Kamwezi has been awarded the prestigious GSK Scholarship for Future Health Leaders to study for a taught master’s course in Epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

GSK offers three scholarships every year to support the training and development of the next generation of leaders in global health and to strengthen the capacity of health systems and health-related research in Africa. These highly competitive scholarships are available to applicants intending to study on a one-year, full-time, London-based (face-to-face) MSc programme at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).

“The programme that I will study at LSHTM aims at equipping students with knowledge in epidemiology and its contribution to other health-related disciplines. Through the program, I will get the opportunity to learn more about how to conduct epidemiological studies and how to objectively assess results of epidemiological studies and apply them. The programme also has modules on spatial epidemiology, a field I am interested in and have been working in for the past one and a half years. Going through this training will enhance my understanding of disease dynamics and help me build up my quantitative research skills.

I am excited for this opportunity as the program will equip me with the epidemiological skills that I need in my career and will help me to contribute effectively to the field of disease surveillance in addition to opening opportunities for doctoral studies. This is also good for MLW as I will be one of the young scientists going through the healthy training pipeline of upcoming researchers who will contribute to the research capacity; not only in the malaria research groups but to the organisation. The training is intense and challenging but I look forward to taking up the challenge and making the most out of it,” said Kamwezi.

Richard Kamwezi holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from the College of Medicine, University of Malawi (now the Kamuzu University of Health Sciences). He is working as an Epidemiologist and Data Analyst on the Maladrone study under the Vector Biology Research Group. Richard first joined MLW in 2018 as a Study Coordinator for the NEOIMMUNE Study under the Viral Immunology research group.

In 2020 he joined the Malaria Epidemiology Research group under the CORE MLW-CoM Pre-Master internship program. These internships are offered to promising candidates to help them enhance their research skills while offering them guidance and support in applying for post-graduate opportunities.  During the internship, he worked on a simulation study aimed at exploring the effect of changing survey locations on malaria prevalence estimates in malaria surveys under the supervision of Dr. Michelle Stanton and Dr. Anja Terlouw. While working on the project, he applied for and secured admission for a master’s course in Epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Congratulations, Richard Kamwezi!