Virtual Global & Public Health Internship - Bolivia
The Virtual Global & Public Health Internship offers undergraduate, pre-health, and graduate-level participants the unique opportunity to learn foundational, industry-specific skills for careers in Global Health, Public Health, and related fields. Through virtual seminars and meetings, interns will explore how communities in Bolivia are addressing their most pressing health challenges.
Program components:
- Competency-informed readings and content
- Intercultural training through CFHI partner Aperian Global
- 30 hours of Spanish instruction
- Virtual sessions led by CFHI Global Partners, who are experts in local health systems and culture. *Lectures will be given in Spanish with English translation.
- Facilitated group reflection sessions
- Cultural learning/virtual immersion
- Seminars on health topics
- Depending on the location, this may include project-based work to deepen understanding of local health realities and support operations and objectives of the host organization/partners
The Virtual Global & Public Health Internship is an unpaid experience. Student fees will be used to compensate CFHI's Global Partners-- in line with our Fair Trade commitment.
Duration
Dr. Cecilia Uribe de Chavez- CFHI La Paz Medical Director: Dr. Uribe is an expert on socioeconomic determinants of health in Bolivia and healthcare delivery strategies in low-resource settings. She is a Pediatrician with her own private practice in La Paz. She also works at a municipal hospital located in El Alto and is the Secretary General of the Committee of Adolescents for the Bolivian Society of Pediatrics. Dr. Uribe is the inspiration behind the Center for Empowerment of Young Mothers, a locally-lead community health project supported by CFHI.
Mr. Gonzalo Claure- CFHI La Paz Local Coordinator: Mr. Claure is Supervisor of the Executive Branch at a local language school. The school was started by the U.S. government and has been in existence for over 50 years, still retaining close ties to the U.S. Embassy. Gonzalo manages local recruitment and study abroad programs for universities and agencies in the US. He also creates and maintains academic networks for Bolivian and American universities and higher education institutions. He is an expert in Bolivian culture and Spanish language.
Below is a one-week sample schedule. Partcipants should expect 20-25 hours of work/week consisting of live sessions and self-paced, individual work. Please note that your virtual internship may not look excatly like the sample schedule. It is only meant to give you an idea of what to expect.
This CFHI program is ideal for students who have a foundation in Spanish and have an interest in health and medicine in small town and rural settings. Non-students are also eligible. To confirm whether you're eligible to apply, please read CFHI's general eligibility requirements.
Minimum Language Required: Beginner 1 Spanish or Above
Beginner 1 Spanish: “I can speak a little and understand at times if people speak slowly and clearly.”
- I can understand and use familiar everyday expressions and simple phrases to get across basic needs.
- I can introduce others and myself. I can ask and answer questions for example where I live, people I know and things I have.
Leading this program on-site are our on-site partners (see Local Team tab), all of whom share Spanish as their native language, but may speak English as well. To provide authentic learning experiences translators are not provided. Daily interactions will be in Spanish, but CFHI’s local team is able to support and help you through your experience.
All CFHI participants applying to programs in Latin America will evaluate their Spanish language skills as part of their application. This information will then be shared with the on-site partners. Most important is your general ability to communicate verbally with those around you and to be proactive in speaking Spanish, versus accuracy with grammatical tenses. All CFHI Latin America programs include Spanish language instruction on-site.
Not sure about your Spanish level? View a full list of CFHI’s language levels for all Latin America programs on our Spanish Level Guidelines page.
- Robust, competency-informed readings and content
- Access to and training rooted in intercultural tools through CFHI partner Aperian Global
- 30 hours of Spanish instruction
- Synchronous and asynchronous virtual sessions led by CFHI Global Partners, all experts in local health systems and culture
- Facilitated group reflection sessions
- Project-based work to deepen understanding of local health realities and support operations and objectives of the host organization/partners
- Cultural learning/virtual immersion
- Final presentation and report to synthesize learning
The Sustainable Development Goals are a global roadmap set forth by the United Nations General Assembly to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure the well-being of all individuals by the year 2030. This program highlights the following SDG's:
