Mona was born in New Haven, Connecticut, and her family traveled a lot over the years so she is no foreigner to the rest of the world. In particular, she has spent significant time travelling to Iran and has a great deal of pride for her Iranian heritage. After graduating with a BS in biological sciences, Mona traveled abroad and it was through a close family friend’s experience with metastatic melanoma, that she realized she was interested in pursuing a career in Dermatology. During medical school at UCONN, she volunteered her time within the community as well as doing independent research projects. Mona has come to Baystate for her preliminary post- graduate year. She remains fluent in Farsi and is skilled in Persian dance and making China flowers.