Looking Ahead: Connecting Research, Policy, and Medicine
As I look beyond my Master of Arts in Human Rights and Social Justice, I want to build on the interests and commitments that developed throughout the program. My graduate studies have given me a clearer sense of direction, particularly through my research on organ trafficking and transplant tourism. Looking ahead, I hope to connect this research with opportunities in public policy and further study in medicine, bringing together human rights knowledge and a stronger scientific understanding of health.
Continuing My Research
I want to continue examining organ trafficking and transplant tourism, particularly the relationships among poverty, coercion, bodily autonomy, and unequal access to healthcare. What began as a classroom presentation has become an area of inquiry that I hope to pursue beyond the MA. My research has raised questions that deserve continued attention: How should consent be understood when financial desperation limits a person’s choices? What responsibilities do institutions have to prevent exploitation? How can responses address both immediate harm and the conditions that make people vulnerable?
As I develop this work, I hope to deepen my understanding of the experiences of affected people and the policies intended to protect them. I also want to examine responses that bring together prevention, accountability, support, and healthcare equity. Continuing this research will require me to remain open to new evidence and perspectives, including those that challenge my existing arguments.
I would welcome opportunities to share my work through publications, conferences, and public education. Communicating research to different audiences is important to me because human rights scholarship can contribute to wider conversations about responsibility and change. I want to make complex issues accessible while maintaining accuracy and respect for the people whose experiences are being discussed.
Exploring a Future in Government and Policy
One career direction I would like to explore is working in government as a human trafficking policy advisor. This possibility connects my interest in research with my desire to contribute to institutional responses to exploitation. I am interested in how evidence informs policy, how governments identify gaps in protection, and how proposed responses are assessed for their effects on affected communities.
My MA has helped me develop skills in critical analysis, research, writing, and communication that I hope to strengthen through future professional experience. In a policy role, I would want to use these skills to examine complex problems, communicate findings clearly, and contribute to recommendations grounded in evidence and human rights principles.
I recognize that policy work requires collaboration and an understanding of practical constraints. It also requires listening to people whose experiences may be poorly represented in official discussions. My EDI practicum reinforced the importance of context, respectful communication, and thoughtful participation in institutional work. I hope to carry these lessons into any future role involving policy development.
Although organ trafficking is my primary research interest, I would also welcome opportunities to broaden my understanding of human trafficking and the systems involved in prevention and protection. This would allow me to situate my research within a wider policy landscape while continuing to develop expertise in the questions that first motivated me.
Building a Scientific Foundation Through Medicine
Alongside my interest in policy, I want to study medicine and develop a stronger scientific foundation. My human rights education has helped me understand the social and institutional conditions that shape health. Further scientific and medical study would allow me to deepen my understanding of the body, disease, treatment, and transplantation.
I am particularly interested in bringing these forms of knowledge together. In relation to my research, a stronger medical background would help me engage more fully with the clinical dimensions of transplantation and the health consequences associated with organ removal. It would also strengthen my ability to communicate across disciplines and understand questions that require both scientific evidence and ethical analysis.
My long-term interest in becoming a physician is connected to a commitment to equitable care. I want to understand people’s health concerns alongside the circumstances that influence their access to treatment and support. My studies have encouraged me to ask how healthcare can uphold dignity and respond thoughtfully to differences in experience, opportunity, and need.
Pursuing medicine will involve further preparation, learning, and sustained effort. I see this as an opportunity to extend my education and develop another set of tools for understanding the issues that matter to me.
Carrying My Values Forward
Whatever direction my career takes, I want equity, respectful communication, and continued learning to remain central to my work. My Métis heritage and my learning about Indigenous education have encouraged me to reflect on identity, historical responsibility, and the importance of respecting distinct knowledge and experiences. I hope to continue developing this understanding throughout my professional life.
My interests in research, government policy, and medicine share a common purpose: understanding how exploitation and inequality affect people and contributing to responses that uphold their dignity. I do not yet know exactly how these paths will come together, but the MA has given me a foundation from which to explore them with greater purpose.
Looking ahead, I want to remain curious, strengthen my expertise, and seek opportunities to turn research into practical contributions. Completing this degree marks an important stage in that journey and provides a foundation for the work and learning still to come.