From Assistant Professor to LSHTM student - Shreyasi's reasons to begin again

20 April 2026

Shreyasi Halder from India has been an academic in India. As an Assistant Professor, she realised she needed more to challenge the status quo. She tells us the reasons behind her decision to become a student once more and why she chose to study at LSHTM.

Taking a step back to move forward

If you had told me a few years ago that after completing my PhD and becoming an Assistant Professor in India, I would find myself back in a student’s seat in London, I might have smiled and called it a dream. Yet here I am, halfway through my MSc Nutrition for Global Public Health degree at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, and the dream has just begun.

My academic journey began in Food and Nutrition at the University of Calcutta in 2010, where I went on to complete my PhD in 2024, celebrating a relationship of 14 years! In 2023, I also began working as an academic at the Department of Applied Nutrition and Dietetics, Sister Nivedita University, Kolkata, teaching and supervising MSc dissertations. On paper, everything seemed to be progressing well. Yet over time, I realised that while I could generate scientific evidence, I often stood at the edges of decision-making spaces. I wanted to understand how nutrition moves beyond the laboratory into public health systems, governance, and policy.

Why LSHTM?

Coming to LSHTM was not about collecting another qualification; it was about upskilling. I wanted to move beyond discipline-specific expertise in nutrition science and gain the language, frameworks, and analytical tools of global public health. The MSc in Nutrition for Global Public Health felt like the bridge I was looking for. Its emphasis on nutritional epidemiology, policy, and food systems thinking offered exactly the interdisciplinary lens I had been missing. I was also drawn by LSHTM’s global reputation and the opportunity to learn in an environment that would challenge me to think beyond my comfort zone. At LSHTM, I quickly realised that respect in academia can mean open doors, approachable mentors, and conversations that truly value your ideas. I am intrigued every day to see how academic interactions could feel so collaborative and approachable. Even discussions on complex topics feel like open dialogues, where questions are welcomed, and diverse viewpoints are valued.

From lecturer to learner

Beyond understanding public health systems academically, returning to the classroom as a student after exactly 8 years has been both humbling and transformative. At the London School, I absolutely love that teaching is highly interactive. Debates, rapid brainstorming, policy critiques and even grant-writing exercises are embedded in everyday class sessions. I expected the MSc to be demanding. A few months in, it revealed just how intense the pace can be: heavy reading loads, frequent assessments and a constant expectation of structured, independent critical thinking. As an international student adjusting to a new academic culture, adapting to UK-style assessments has taken some time. There have been many moments of uncertainty, unease and struggle, but I have now concluded that intellectual discomfort is part of the programme’s design and I have come to appreciate it!

Learning beyond the classroom

For me, life as a student at the London School has extended far beyond lectures and coursework, because I wanted it no other way. Serving as an LSHTM Student Ambassador has been particularly meaningful. Supporting prospective students and sharing my experiences has given me a chance to reflect on my own journey so far. In addition to ambassador duties, I also participated in the LSHTM 2026 Telethon, which was my way of supporting the LSHTM Scholarship Fund. Speaking to alumni, hearing their stories, and representing LSHTM made me feel genuinely connected to a much bigger community. One experience that stands out is having the opportunity to narrate the latest LSHTM campus tour video. Being entrusted with representing the School’s voice and story in this way felt incredibly special. Community celebrations at the School, such as Welcome Week, Diwali, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day, have been equally memorable, helping me forge friendships across cohorts.

LSHTM phone campaign student fundraisers. — Dialling in for a cause- with the telephone fundraiser team at the LSHTM Telethon.

So far, I have enjoyed a wonderful range of experiences at LSHTM. From celebrating Lunar New Year with tea meditation and learning Chinese calligraphy, to wandering London’s streets with classmates to see the Christmas lights! Academically, I have been inspired everywhere. Two experiences in particular stand out. I attended the launch of the Lancet series on Ultra-Processed Foods at the Royal College of Physicians with my classmates. I also met Dr Cesar Victora at the 2025 Pumphandle Lecture at the iconic John Snow Lecture Theatre. As a student of food and nutrition, sitting in person and hearing Dr Victora, whose work has shaped much of what I study, was incredibly special. It was one of those moments that reminded me why I have chosen Nutrition as my path!

Beyond these experiences, forming close friendships across programs and cultures has immensely expanded my perspective on life and made me feel truly part of an international community. Living in central London, at the wonderful Goodenough College just steps from the LSHTM campuses, has been remarkable in itself. From Westminster Abbey to St Paul’s Cathedral, Royal Albert Hall to the River Thames, each corner of London has been a daily immersion in history and inspiration.

Motivation: Then and now

When I first began my journey in MSc Nutrition for Global Public Health last September, I was driven by the idealism of changing the world through research and interventions. Now, my experiences at the London School have taught me that public health change is rarely linear. Learning systems thinking and viewing food as a complex, interconnected system (thanks to the IFSTAL programme as well) has strengthened my commitment to nutrition equity. Today, my motivation is both grounded and ambitious: I hope to shape programmes and policies that place nutrition at the heart of health systems.

LSHTM students at the launch of the Lancet series on Ultra-Processed Foods. — At the launch of the Lancet series on Ultra-Processed Foods with my classmates.

My message to you, the readers

LSHTM is not just an academic institution; it is an intellectual ecosystem.

If you are looking for comfort, this may not be the place. The programme challenges assumptions, stretches thinking in multiple directions, and pushes you beyond your comfort zone. Assessments and classroom debates are designed to test your patience, resilience, and independent thinking. Here we confront complexity honestly, learning to engage with the world’s most pressing health challenges. Perhaps most rewardingly, at LSHTM, I share classrooms with friends whose expertise and ambition I know will help shape the future of global public health, a privilege in itself.

For me, returning for a second master’s after a PhD was a deliberate step forward. It is exactly doing what I wanted it to do, bridging the gap between knowing the science and applying it to real-world systems and policies. My advice to anyone considering this leap is simple: do not let previous qualifications or experience limit your future. LSHTM challenges you, but more importantly, it is a place that empowers you to change the world.