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Julie Efremenkova came to Binghamton undecided, but applied to Watson College as a mechanical engineering student, interested in a future career with NASA and aeronautical engineering. What drew her interest instead was anthropology, thanks to its human focus.

“I took Intro to Sociocultural Anthropology, and there was an emphasis placed on field work, immersing yourself in their culture and recognizing that you have so much more to learn from them than they necessarily have from you,” Efremenkova said. “That human connection versus reading a textbook and working with machinery made me realize that I wanted to work with people, not parts.”

Interested in how biology, evolution, culture and experience is intertwined with people’s health, she is now working to see how people’s culture, genetics, environment and past impact the way that they live.

To this end, Efremenkova recently completed her bachelor’s in biological anthropology and is on track to earn her master’s degree in biomedical anthropology as part of the 4+1 program.

“There are certain fields where the credential of a master’s has more value than just a bachelor’s, and I think that anthropology is one of those fields. When I heard about the 4+1 program, I realized it was more affordable and that I would be taking classes with the same professors that I love already,” she said. “I felt so safe and I thought, ‘Why not just go for it? We’re one of the only universities with this kind of program.’”

Through her hard work and dedication to the field, Efremenkova was also chosen to accompany Laure Spake to The Gambia to aid in her projects. Traveling during semester breaks from summer 2024 to summer 2025, she ultimately became the research coordinator for Spake, managing a team of 11 people undertaking biocultural data collection with mothers and their children. In addition to ensuring high-quality data for received samples, she trained and supervised the fieldworkers in survey administration.

The first project she was part of had two waves and dealt with religion and family. The initial wave collected data from five countries, although the Gambian data was the strongest; it was focused on identifying if religion influences social networks and the health outcomes of children and their mothers. The second wave helped refine the data and included some mental health questions. That research began in May 2024 and ended in October 2024.

The second project started in December 2024 and is still ongoing; it focuses on female genital cutting (FGC) and its continued use in the Gambia. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are three types: type three or infibulation is what most people think of when they think of FGC, but type one, partial or complete excision, is more prevalent in the Gambia, despite being banned since 2015. Interventions are often targeted at type three, but type one still has poor negative mental, reproductive and health effects.

“We wanted to ask what function it serves; if people are still doing it, then we are clearly misunderstanding its purpose in society. If we’re able to look at those, then maybe our research can help local and group grassroot organizations and NGOs within the country produce interventions that are effective,” Efremenkova said.

But the process requires more than just asking questions. To even administer the survey, the research team needs to complete community sensitization by scheduling a meeting with that village’s leader and the leader of the mosque. As part of this process, cola nuts and mints are given as sign of respect, and the study’s purpose is explained.

Then, researchers must convince people to participate; because of the practice’s criminalization, there is fear that information will be shared with authorities or the government. Once these steps are done, surveys and focus groups can be completed, although they must be piloted to ensure they are both understandable and achieving their purpose.

By conducting this research, Spake and Efremenkova have found that while the continued prevalence of FGC may be due to suitable marriage prospects in some cases, it may be explained by a newer, more informed, hypothesis.

“We were looking at social factors and seeing why this continues to thrive. If you’re not cut, it’s believed that you won’t make a suitable bride; there is this idea that it stops women from being promiscuous and ensures virginity until marriage,” Efremenkova said. “But we’ve found it also prevents alienation from a community; FGC is an important function of acceptance in some villages.”

Efremenkova is thankful for the support and recognition she has received and believes that the lessons she has learned will benefit her future. After these experiences, she has come to a better understanding of what she wants out of a career; her next step is to complete an accelerated BSN program at Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences and become a nurse practitioner.

“The Department of Anthropology has such strong faculty support, and I found a community that I never would have expected. If I hadn’t gone here, I wouldn’t have found my passion,” Efremenkova added. “Experiences like this give you just as much information about what you don’t like as what you do — and working with these teams and these women in the Gambia from day-to-day in that capacity made me realize what I want for my life.”