College students Share Their Summer time Public Well being Practica Experiences

It could be midwinter, however first-year Grasp’s college students have already got summer time on their minds. Throughout Columbia Mailman, college students are busy exploring their choices for the summer time public well being internships often known as the Utilized Apply Expertise, or APEx, which usually takes place between Might and August earlier than they start their second yr.

The APEx offers college students the chance to use what they’ve realized within the classroom after their first yr and achieve hands-on expertise to organize them for a future in public well being.

“The objectives of the APEx are to permit college students to use what they realized in school in a real-life setting, to get uncovered to completely different fields of public well being, and perceive and see themselves as professionals,” mentioned Ana Jimenez-Bautista, director of Discipline Apply, Workplace of Careers and Discipline Apply.

College students can apply for APEx positions with public well being organizations in america and overseas, together with dozens of organizations with which the College has sturdy ties—or they’ll design their very own distinctive expertise utilizing their very own private networks, in addition to the choices recommended by their tutorial departments. 

The Workplace of Discipline Apply provides sources all through the method and on January 31 hosted an occasion the place they supplied an outline of the APEx search and program necessities alongside a panel of second-year college students who mentioned their utility course of and APEx expertise. The Workplace of Discipline Apply additionally provides monetary assist by a number of fellowship and scholarship applications, and disseminates a modest Columbia Mailman-supported stipend to all college students.

There are three summer time funding applications: the Meals Fellowship, the Ahead Neighborhood Fellowship, and the Huo Scholarship. All three are open to first-year MPH college students pursuing a two-year diploma and two-year MHA and MS Biostatistics college students, and whereas every fellowship accepts a unique variety of college students, they every provide $5,000 to their recipients. The decision for functions for 2023 fellowships will probably be introduced in March on the Discipline Apply Canvas website accessible to college students.

Meals Fellowship

The Meals Fellowship is open to college students working with a corporation to deliver sources and enhance entry to wholesome meals in native communities whereas conducting analysis on meals coverage and meals techniques.

For 2022 Meals Fellow Rachael Metz, this meant working for america Division of Agriculture (USDA) within the Nationwide Agricultural Library (NAL). Metz, a second yr within the Inhabitants and Household Well being division finishing a certificates in Well being Promotion Analysis and Apply, carried out a wants evaluation of the NAL’s on-line assortment accessible to be used by each researchers and most of the people. She additionally wrote weblog posts and electronic mail blasts and used Google Analytics to establish search developments on food-related subjects.

“I loved attending to study extra about all the things that USDA encompasses and speak to people from all completely different corners of the division and study in regards to the completely different sides of the USDA and the way they’re built-in with different authorities companies,” mentioned Metz.

Huo Scholarship

The Huo Summer time APEx Scholarship is awarded to college students working in companies dedicated to the general public good, by a neighborhood division of public well being or different public company or a neighborhood or non-profit group.

Gabriella Khawly, a second-year MPH pupil within the division of Epidemiology pursuing a certificates in Well being Coverage and Apply, was one Huo Fellow. For her 2022 APEx, she labored as a coverage intern on the New York Academy of Drugs. She carried out a neighborhood well being wants evaluation for NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. She additionally carried out unbiased analysis on overdose prevention facilities in New York and revealed a associated op-ed.

Khawly highlighted her expertise writing op-eds, one among which was revealed within the New York Day by day Information and one other in Gotham Gazette, as being one among her favourite points of the expertise, saying, “It was actually cool to see this from the early levels of doing analysis and writing communications which can be palatable to the general public to see that by and be a part of the bigger marketing campaign.”

FORWARD Neighborhood Fellowship

The FORWARD Neighborhood Fellowship supplies funding for APEx initiatives that concentrate on antiracist well being initiatives, with all initiatives happening in Washington Heights, Inwood, Harlem, and the South Bronx.

Riki Eijima, a second-year MPH pupil within the division of Sociomedical Sciences with a certificates in Historical past, Ethics, and Legislation accomplished her APEx with the Casita Maria Middle for Arts & Schooling within the South Bronx. Eijima carried out a neighborhood well being wants evaluation, strolling across the neighborhood to establish particular neighborhood options within the constructed atmosphere in addition to visiting local people organizations and parks to see what sources they’d accessible and in contrast these with the knowledge on their web sites.

When reflecting on the neighborhood well being wants evaluation, Eijima recalled, “All the speculation that I’m studying, particularly in SMS, it has functions…it was very affirming in that I’ve realized rather a lot and might be useful on the planet.”