He received his doctorate in Immunology from Emory University and then studied immune mechanisms of antigen- and virus-induced autoimmune diseases as a National Multiple Sclerosis Society Postdoctoral Fellow at Northwestern University Medical School. In 2002, Dr. Tompkins joined the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research at the FDA (Bethesda, Maryland) as a Research Fellow, expanding his infectious diseases research, focusing on influenza virus vaccines and therapies. He was recruited to the University of Georgia in 2005 where he is a member of a NIAID Center of Excellence for Influenza Research and Surveillance. In 2012, Dr. Tompkins was awarded a Senior Fulbright Scholar’s Award to work with the Australian Animal Health Laboratories in Geelong, Australia for six months, where he worked on identification of novel antiviral drugs against Henipaviruses.