At CHER, we welcome team members from all stages of their career. From undergrads to faculty members, researchers go through a lot of steps.
When we have the opportunity to support a young researcher, we take our responsibility seriously.
We also love to see the future starting right in front of us. One of our newest colleagues is Aditi Yerra. Right now she’s an undergrad, but who knows where we’ll see her in five or 10 years?
Aditi is looking forward to diving into an exploration of research that moves us all into a future with healthy communities. And we’re sure she’ll be pretty great at it!
Get to know Aditi in this Q&A.
Tell us about your role at CHER. What’s your position and focus?
I am an undergraduate Research Assistant with the Co-LEARN project.
What was your path to CHER?
I have always been passionate about health equity, and to explore this, I decided to look into health equity research I could be involved in around UNC.
This led me to CHER, the perfect combination of everything I sought!
What Are your goals while at CHER?
I hope to gain exposure to the health equity sphere and the specific avenues to implement that in our communities!
The Co-LEARN project is significant to me because I’ve previously worked with rural communities and have a strong passion for making an impact, especially through preventative methods: the main goal of Co-LEARN.
Furthermore, I am excited at the opportunity to meet like-minded individuals, especially those at different stages in their careers to help gain insight into my path.
CHER is such a wonderful organization that I cannot wait to be a part of!
What are some challenges you’ve faced in your field of work?
One challenge I anticipate is my lack of experience in health equity research. Most of the content and procedures I am currently learning are new to me, which can make my learning curve a little larger than others.
However, I am lucky to have a great support system that will make this transition easier!
What’s a fun fact about you?
I’ve been indoor skydiving (I was pretty bad at it 🙂)! Indoor skydiving is essentially a very large tube in a warehouse that exerts a strong wind force upward. So the second you step into it, you shoot upward and it is like you’re skydiving, but you’re inside in an enclosed space!