Sophie Spector

Raised in Boston, Massachusetts, Sophie is studying infectious disease at the intersection of science and humanities. Captivated by the power of microbes from a young age, Sophie has used her studies to understand the influence of epidemic disease in history and how to better prepare for the future by drawing on science and public health.

At Gallatin, Sophie has taken several courses that have helped shape her concentration, including Allen Keller’s “Health and Human Rights in the World Community,” and Jacob Remes’s “Critical Disaster Studies,” her final paper for which was published in Confluence. These classes have helped her develop a multifaceted understanding of infectious disease.

Sophie was awarded a Gallatin Undergraduate Research Fund Award in 2019 for her work at the Carlton Lab where she studied malaria prevalence in India. In 2020, she was selected to participate in the University Leadership Honors Society. In addition to her work as a lab technician, Sophie works as a learning assistant at the University Learning Center, and interned in the summer of 2020 at the International Aids Vaccine Initiative where she worked on a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. In her spare time, Sophie volunteers as a crisis counselor and is co-president of the Biological Society.