Jacquelyn Smith is from Lexington, Kentucky and received her MD from the University of Kentucky. She completed internal medicine residency at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, SC. She was selected to be one of the chief residents the year after completing residency. She then completed rheumatology fellowship at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC where she also participated in research involving osteoarthritis, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis. She enjoys rheumatology because of the ability to form long-lasting relationships with patients and because of the complexity of the diseases.