Within a span of three years, the Center for Learning and Childhood Development has successfully run a global health internship program in the areas of newborn and child health, developmental delays and disabilities, The Center’s Global Health Internship Program started in the early summer of 2017, with three students and has grown to 20 students in the past two years. The eight-week program gives students the opportunity to participate in a research project or community service project, mentoring from researchers and service providers, training to enhance professional development.

In the first year, the Center hosted two undergraduate students from Brown University’s Minority Health and Health Disparity International Research Training Program, and a Master of Science in Public Health student from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The three students worked on research related to developmental disabilities in Ghana and created a documentary to shift stigma toward children with cerebral palsy.

The following year, the Center hosted seven students; five from Brown University and one each from Tugaloo and Oakland University. Our 2018 intern cohort worked on two projects namely, Neonatal Health Project, which aimed at identifying interventions, policies and community actions that have saved the most newborn lives in the Northern, Volta, and Upper West Regions of Ghana. Students traveled to the Northern Region of Ghana and interviewed health workers, traditional birth attendants, government and non-government organization professionals, and local chiefs. They also created materials to increase knowledge on and access to care for children with developmental disabilities. Last year, nine students, both undergraduate and graduate students participated in the eight-week-long internship to create social, public health-informed interventions. They were from Oakland University, Yale, St. Lawrence University, Tougaloo College, Johns Hopkins University, Brown University, University of Georgia, and the University of Notre Dame. Below are a few testimonials we received from our interns;

The Program does not leave interns with trails of work-bound sessions only. As part of our schedules, we engage interns in the rich Ghanaian culture through visits to heritage sites like the Kakum Park, Mole National Park, and Elmina Castle. This forms the fun and exciting moments during the internship, as the students take long breathtaking trips to these renowned national tourist sites.

It doesn’t end there. You can also sign up to partake in this year’s internship program. Kindly visit this PAGE to know the application details or click on the flyer below to apply.

THE GLOBAL HEALTH INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE