College of Graduate Studies

Seoyun Choe

South Korea

College:

College of Sciences

Degree Program:

Mathematics PhD

Research Focus:

Mathematical modeling of infectious diseases

Growing up, Seoyun Choe’s mother always told her to become a person the world needs. She knew that she wanted to do something impactful with her life but was unsure what field she wanted to pursue. Since she was in kindergarten, she had always loved math. However, she developed a passion for biology as well during her time in high school. Thinking she wouldn’t be able to study both, Choe decided to pursue a future in math.

The South Korea native went on to study mathematics at Kyung Hee University, where she first learned about biological mathematics through a special lecture towards the end of her junior year. Intrigued by the multidisciplinary field, Choe decided to study biological mathematics in the master's program at the University. During her graduate studies, South Korea was overcome with MERS, and the global COVID-19 pandemic followed shortly after, cementing Choe’s desire to continue her work.

“Since I started studying in this field, I've realized that unexpected diseases and completely new diseases continue to occur, and diseases never disappear,” she says. “When I watch the world go through various diseases, I keep thinking that I want to be a person who helps the world with the knowledge I have, and these things motivate me.”

Once, she completed her master’s degree, Choe wanted to expand her horizons and experience life outside of her home country, so she began seeking study abroad opportunities in the United States. However, learning English provide to be a significant hurdle. Some of her friends encouraged her to give up and get a job in Korea, but Choe was committed to furthering her studies outside of her home country, and her perseverance paid off.

Choe searched for universities with biological mathematics classes and began applying to various programs for a master's degree, believing that her Korean master’s degree wouldn’t be recognized in the United States. However, when she applied to UCF, she was advised to change her application for the master's program to a Ph.D. program and was offered a scholarship and a fellowship. “Because I felt UCF was kind and recognized me, I chose UCF,” she says.

Now, Choe is researching biological mathematics focusing on the mathematical modeling of infectious diseases. Many diseases, such as COVID-19, Influenza, and dengue, can be described as mathematical models that reflect their characteristics. These models of infectious diseases can predict how much the disease will spread and how to use control strategies such as vaccination and treatments optimally. Choe describes how the mathematical modeling is essential and plays a significant role because it is impossible to experiment with disease spread among people.

For her work in the field, Choe has won the ORCGS Doctoral Fellowship, the Doctoral Research Support Award, and was awarded the 2022 Student Scholar Symposium-Judge’s Choice Award. Due to the pandemic, the scholar symposium was the first conference Choe attended in person. “The symposium allowed me to attend the Florida Graduate Student Conference, and the conference gave me the opportunity to remind my dream by seeing many other students working hard in their field of study,” she says.

After she graduates next summer, Choe plans to continue her research finding ways to mitigate the spread of infectious diseases. She aims to work in a position where she can use her knowledge of disease modeling and achieve her goal in life: to be a person who can help prevent or reduce the spread of the disease when an outbreak like COVID-19 occurs.