Robert Yau

UConn School of Dental Medicine, Class of 2014

Background: Massachusetts native. Raised in Orlando, FL and CT. UConn graduate with combined B.S.E. and M.S. degrees in chemical engineering, along with minor in molecular and cell biology.

Related Experience: Volunteer, Engineers Without Borders in Thailand and Ethiopia. Service trip to Dominican Republic through Orphanage Outreach, providing education and clinics on oral health for children.

“My involvement with Engineers Without Borders, through which I traveled to rural areas of Thailand and Ethiopia, first motivated me to work with underserved populations. I saw how healthcare in developing countries often responded to the symptoms of poverty, and not to such underlying causes as dirty water, malnutrition, and education, all of which can affect a person’s health as significantly as the diseases. My trip to the Dominican Republic through orphanage outreach solidified my decision to pursue dental medicine. These experiences opened my eyes to how life’s realities directly affect health. So too, I realized that a clinician has the responsibility to help patients overcome feelings of powerlessness in an unfair healthcare delivery system. By joining UST, I hope to be provided with a collaborative environment, one in which I can draw on the strengths of other disciplines to bridge the gaps in healthcare today.”