At the University of South Florida, public health extends far beyond the classroom and transcends borders. It unites people from diverse backgrounds and places, creating a desire to make life better around the globe. Reaching almost every continent, College of Public Health students are gaining hands-on experience around the world.
Over the summer, next generation of public health leaders participated in the International Applied Practice Experience programs of varying lengths to Accra, Ghana and Sydney, Australia.
Maura Fowler, a senior public health major with a concentration in dietetics, heard first about the opportunity to travel to Accra, Ghana from dietetics director Dr. Lauri Wright, who has close ties with the dietetics community in that region. Fowler was one of the students selected for the trip. She said she wanted to go because the trip would allow her to combine her knowledge as a soon-to-be dietitian with her public health education and apply it to the experiences in Ghana.
Maura Fowler went into the community and performed screenings for acute malnutrition. (Photo courtesy of Fowler)
“Being in a developing country with a lack of resources was very interesting, because we were able to see how the health care professionals there adapt to this obstacle,” Fowler said. “It showed us that adaptability and flexibility is an important skill to have.”
Fowler said it was a unique experience that combined clinical and community field work.
“We experienced new Ghanaian food and learned how to cook it, networked with the dietitians and health care providers in Accra, went out into the community to examine local children for acute malnutrition and provided professional insight when rounding with Ghanaian dietitians. The group visited a different hospital every day!”
Maura Fowler (pictured in the center in green) along with Dr. Lauri Wright and fellow students had the opportunity to complete rounds at a hospital with Ghanaian dietitians. (Photo courtesy of Fowler)
“Overall, this experience allowed me to be closer to my peers, build confidence in the field of dietetics and public health and exposed me to situations that I never would have had access to in the United States,” Fowler said. “It brought the stories we learn in school to life, being in an actual developing country that has barriers and challenges to their medical care.”
Recent MPH graduate Brittany Rummers was provided with a list of research studies and accompanying locations around the world for her international field experience.
Brittany Rummers, MPH, CPH, traveled to Sydney, Australia for her International Applied Practice Experience. (Photo courtesy of Rummers)
As a global health practice student, she opted to practice her public health passion in Sydney, Australia.
“In global health, we are taught ways in which we can develop public health interventional programs and studies around the world, applying what we learned in public health on a domestic scale to that on an international one, specifically in developing countries/regions worldwide,” Rummers said.
During her time there, Rummers worked with Pasifika Preventing Diabetes Program at the Western Sydney University Medical School, which is a program that aims to study diabetes amongst the Pasifika population in Sydney.
“Much my work consisted of traveling to different Pasifika churches in Sydney (Samoan, Tongan, Fijian) to perform data collections, which included taking blood pressures, measuring height and weight, distributing health surveys, and answering health related questions,” Rummers said.
Rummers, (pictured fourth from the right) networked with people across Sydney, learning about different Pasifika cultures, as well as the Australian health system in New South Wales. (Photo courtesy of Rummers)
“This experience gave me the opportunity to immerse myself in cultures I knew very little about prior to going to Australia,” Rummers said. “The skills I learned in developing health promotion and disease prevention programs here in America are not only transferable to locations worldwide, but also grow and develop with international field experiences.”
The COPH also offers several unique study abroad opportunities for students to Canada, Japan, London and Panama. To learn more about joining the study abroad programs for 2025-2026 and what may be gained from these experiences, fill out their interest form.