FIU Public Health Program Graduates First Ph.D. Student

Elliot Sklar’s academic adventure has taken him from Montreal, Canada, to Miami. His journey culminated in 2008 when he became the first student at FIU to earn a Ph.D. in public health.

The 28-year-old Sklar had already earned a master’s in integrated marketing communication from FIU when he enrolled in the doctoral program at the Robert Stempel School of Public Health. He was one of 20 students in the inaugural class in Fall 2005, and the first to graduate from the Health and Disease Prevention track.

“Being the first was both rewarding and challenging,” Sklar said. “There wasn’t a guidebook or established procedures in place to show me the way. But I had a great opportunity to work with and shadow fantastic professors and to meet public health professionals and advocates.”

After graduation, Sklar accepted a job as a health programs manager at Unidad in Miami Beach, a non-profit agency, where he is responsible for managing and evaluating three grant-funded health programs. His ultimate goal is to launch a consulting practice.

“There are so many exciting challenges in protecting the public's health today and in the future,” said Sklar. “I’m looking forward to exploring career opportunities in this dynamic and growing field.”