Duke-NUS - Admissions Blog

Tell us about your path to Duke-NUS. I graduated with a B.Sc in Neuroscience with Honors and a B.A. in Music, concentrating on flute performance from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, USA. During my undergraduate years, I was a member of Professor Kathleen Page’s lab where I studied the effects of altered melatonin levels on the expression of genes involved in the circadian rhythm. After Bucknell, I started my Masters in Global Health at Duke University, North Carolina, USA. For my thesis project, I went to Sri Lanka and spent some time here at Duke-NUS studying Sri Lanka’s dengue epidemics with Duane Gubler and Christopher Woods. After graduating from Duke, I came to Duke-NUS to enroll in the PhD program focusing on emerging infectious diseases. I am now a member of Wang Linfa and October Sessions’ laboratories focusing on pathogen detection from sequencing and serological platforms. What are some of your interests and hobbies? Outside of science, my passion is music. I enjoy freelancing on piano and flute or having jam sessions with friends. I also have a strong case of wanderlust and enjoy traveling around the SE Asia region when time allows.

Before joining Duke-NUS Medical School, Lim Ka Keat, a 3rd year PhD student in the Integrated Biology and Medicine (IBM) programme, worked for a number of years as a project manager in a research center in Kuala Lumpur. Although he developed an interest in drug discovery research during his undergraduate days as a Pharmacy student, it was his work experience of managing research projects on prescription and medication utilization that opened his eyes to the big picture of healthcare and health systems, and inspired him to explore the area of health policy. With the encouragement of very supportive bosses, colleagues, pharmacy lecturers and his family, he first undertook a Masters in health policy and health economics in London. Thereafter, he decided to pursue his interest further, and applied to do a PhD here at Duke-NUS Medical School. We interview him to learn more about his research and its relevance to our part of the world.