text only | about slu | apply now | contact slu | slu home
advanced
search



SPH Home

Mission & Strategic Focus

About the School
Dean's Message
Faculty Bios
Research at the School

Departments and Divisions
News and Events
Alumni and Friends

Academics and Programs

Schedules

Careers

Prospective Students
Current Students


Visiting/Directions



School of Public Health
3545 Lafayette Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63104 
800-782-6769
Fax: 314-977-8150
E-Mail: sphinfo@slu.edu



Student Development

 

updated frequently!

Within the School of Public Health, students' professional and career development activities are managed by Coordinators - one within each Department.  They work to build and cultivate mutually beneficial relationships among the School's faculty, students and staff with leaders in the field, including: · Internship preceptors · fellowship sponsors · potential employers in both the public and private sectors · public health, health services, health policy and research leaders in the local and national communities · school alumni and other professionals who share the School's mission and commitment to excellence.  The Coordinators are:

Maxine Lax

MHA Internship Coordinator

314-977-8112

laxm@slu.edu

Catherine Nolan, MPH

Community Health Practice Experience Coordinator

314-977-8220

nolanca@slu.edu

Professional and Career Development

The student development coordinators present a schedule of professional and career development seminars and activities during a dedicated time on Tuesdays from 4:15 - 5:50 PM, also known as "Tuesdays at Salus," which brings together activities designed to grow and develop students' professional and career search skills, and to expand students' knowledge and appreciation of the fields of Public Health, Health Management and Health Policy beyond the classroom. The Series includes professional rounds in Health Management, Health Policy and Community Health, and activities such as: · Résumé development guidance · Professional interview training and practice · Communication and Networking Skills · Annual Professional Etiquette dinner.  Please consult the current schedule or the School of Public Health Event Calendar for times and locations, or download a copy of the schedule below:

 

Each year the School also publishes and distributes résumé books for upcoming HMP, MPH and MSPH graduates, sponsors the annual MHA Recruitment Day and Community Health Career Day, hosts on-campus recruiting visits by employers and fellowship sponsors from throughout the nation, manages a job posting system for students and employers, runs the School's in-house Career Resource Center, provides one-on-one career advising for students and much more.

Field Experience in Health Management, Health Policy and
Public Health

One of the most important aspects of student development is the required internship and practice experience programs for the MHA and MPH students. For both programs, the field placement is among the most critical and formative experiences in the curriculum. Students gain enormous benefits from their experiences by testing their classroom learning in the "real world," taking on new responsibilities and enhancing their professional knowledge and skills. Additionally, students work with experienced preceptors who can provide guidance, career perspective and advice, as well as mentoring and links to post-graduate opportunities. It is not unusual for a student's internship to lead to a permanent position, either with the organization itself or with an employer encountered through networking while doing the field experience.

  • HMP INTERNSHIP

All MHA, MHA/MBA, MHA/JD and MPH/Health Policy students are required to complete a professional health services management internship during their course of study. Students typically complete the required minimum number of credit hours in their core curricula, including all specific course prerequisites, and must obtain the approval of the MHA internship director or the Health Policy program advisor before enrolling in the internship program.  All students who anticipate completing the internship requirement in the coming academic year are required to attend the program’s fall orientation session in early September and participate in all subsequent internship training activities sponsored by the Office of Student Development throughout the academic year in preparation for placement in the field.

Most HMP internships consist of a 13-week, full-time, paid placement in a privately owned health care organization. Health policy internships take place in an organization or office concerned with health and/or public policy.  Full-time MHA and MHA/MBA students usually do their internships during the summer before their final year of academic course work, while most MHA/JD students do so after completing two years of their required four year program. Placements are made by the MHA faculty, who match individual students’ experience and career interests with the nature and preferences of available placement sites each year. 

For information about the MHA and MPH/Health Policy internship, contact Program Coordinator, Maxine Lax, at 314-977-8112 or laxm@slu.edu.

  • COMMUNITY HEALTH PRACTICE EXPERIENCE (INTERNSHIP)

A critical component of the curriculum at Saint Louis University School of Public Health is the opportunity for MPH students to integrate their classroom learning, which provides a broad spectrum of public health skills, into experiential learning. This planned, supervised, and evaluated experience improves competence in public health practice relevant to the field of study. The practice experience provides a dynamic environment for students to work with experienced professionals in public or private organizations that address significant public health issues.

The newly redesigned Community Health practice experience underscores the importance of placing students in the community for this crucial component of the curriculum.  All MPH students, except students in the MPH/MS in Nutrition and Dietetics, MPH/MSN and MPH/MSW degree programs are required to complete an approved practice experience in a local, state, federal, or international organization that addresses significant public health issues.

Click HERE for forms required for the Community Health Practice Experience/Internship.

[Students in the MPH/MS in Nutrition and Dietetics, MPH/MSN and MPH/MSW programs meet their internship requirements by a course/practice experience within their non-MPH program.]

Students are also encouraged to pursue competetive, national internship programs for graduate students in public health.  These programs are listed on a separate table with links to contact information:

Click HERE for a partial list of national internship opportunities for students in public health programs.

For information about the Community Health Practice Experience contact Program Coordinator, Catherine Nolan, at 314-977-8220 or nolanca@slu.edu.


about slu | apply now | contact slu | slu home
©1818 - 2005 SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY
Where Knowledge Touches Lives®
Learn about the fleur-de-lis