Health Professions Advising

Kate Fukawa-Connelly, MS, is the Director of Health Professions Advising.  She supports the progress of undergraduates and alumni as they develop into future health professionals. She is committed to getting to know all pre-health students holistically, so that she can guide them toward making decisions that will support their academic, personal and professional goals. She has particular expertise working with students who are the first in their families to attend college, and students who come from other backgrounds that are underrepresented in medicine. Kate is a Chicago native (go Cubs!), studied Biology and Comparative Literature at the University of California Davis and earned her graduate degree in College Student Personnel at Miami University of Ohio. She is also a nationally ranked Scrabble (R) expert and plays at the local club in Princeton.

Allison Smith is the Associate Director of Health Professions Advising. She is dedicated to learning about each individual pre-health student as we work together to plan their academic and professional paths. Allison has a background in academic advising and has expertise in counseling pre-health students on personal statements from her time as a writing center administrator. She has also served as a faculty member at the university level teaching Composition, American Literature, and Film Studies. A Connecticut native, Allison earned a B.A. in English at Tufts University and an M.A. in English and American Literature at the University of California Riverside.

Dr. Mahmoud is on the faculty of both the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and the Department of Molecular Biology at Princeton University. He has recently retired as President of Merck Vaccines and member of Management Committee of Merck & Company, Inc. His prior academic services at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals of Cleveland spanned 25 years, concluding as Chairman of Medicine and Physician-in-Chief from 1987 to 1998.

Jennifer Samarel is the Administrative Assistant in the Office of Health Professions Advising. She provides support to the Director and the Committee on the Health Professions, helping to answer student and alumni questions, maintaining office databases, maintaining this website, processing annual committee letters, and developing systems to serve HPA students effectively and efficiently.