Study Abroad

Collective Health, Race and Culture in Bahia, Brazil

This study abroad program will provide an educational and cultural opportunity for up to 15 graduate and undergraduate students interested in global public health. The program focuses on the ideas of collective health, race, and culture in Salvador, Brazil. Salvador is the third-largest city in Brazil, was the first capital of Brazil and is known for the food, music, and beautiful beaches.

Field Study of Contemporary and Emerging Global Public Health Issues in Ghana: A Focus on Water/Sanitation, HIV, and Women’s Health

The field study seeks to provide undergraduate and graduate students with an opportunity to learn first-hand about three leading contemporary and emerging global public health issues in Ghana (a developing country), and how these issues, though universal, are influenced by global disparities in wealth, differences in cultural norms and practices, gender inequity, and the general lack of access to basic resources.

UK Epidemiology Field School: A Study on Global Urban Cities

This two-week international field study will introduce students to urban public health issues using the diverse city of Manchester as a living laboratory. In partnership with The University of Manchester, the program will provide will provide classroom-based and experiential activities to introduce students to epidemiological research methods that can be used to examine urban health challenges.

This program provided students with the opportunity to learn firsthand about contemporary public health issues in Ghana, including water and sanitation, HIV, and women’s health. Students collected and analyzed primary data from the field, compared findings with what pertains in the United States, and proposed culturally sensitive strategies for promoting health.

This program provided an educational and cultural opportunity for graduate and undergraduate students interested in global public health research with a focus on collective health, health promotion and epidemiology as conducted in Salvador, Brazil. The program included: in-class instruction, weekly public health field trips in the city of Salvador, cross cultural lectures, and an applied research project as well as language instruction and homestays. Students also participated in excursions in the state of Bahia.

This interdisciplinary field study abroad program offered a three-week overseas academic adventure on the southern coast of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The program provided an opportunity for students to increase their cross-cultural awareness, while studying social justice and health disparities from an international, comparative perspective. The program also offered homestays with local families, language classes, guest lectures from local experts, service learning projects in the community, and excursions to cultural and historical sites.

This new study abroad program focused on learning about Zen Buddhism Tradition and provides educational, applied, and cultural opportunity in Kamakura, Japan for up to 10 graduate students who are interested in public health, integrative health, research, and practice of traditional forms of mind-body healing. Students were introduced to a cultural context where Mindfulness originated. Through mentoring and hands-on experiential activities, students gained invaluable knowledge and skills about the history of mindfulness and the Zen Tradition as part of the culture of health that will augment their academic preparations at Georgia State. The program built on Dr. Shanta Dube’s research on the impact of stress on health, and practices that originate in Asia/East Asia that can counteract the stress response, build resilience, and promote well-being.

This program in Uganda provided an educational, applied, and cultural opportunity for undergraduate or graduate students interested in public health, research and practice of alcohol misuse and harm (including violence, injuries, and HIV).  Students were introduced to public health issues from a global perspective. Through mentoring and hands-on experiential activities, students gained invaluable knowledge and skills that augmented their academic preparations at Georgia State. The program built on Dr. Monica Swahn’s research in Uganda over the past 9 years and her previous appointment as a Fulbright Scholar at Makerere University in Kampala.

In July 2018, Prof. Christine Stauber lead students interested in global health on an educational and cultural learning adventure in Salvador, Brazil, focused on examining collective health, research and practice. Students also experienced the culture and natural beauty of Bahia.

The 2018 study abroad program in the Dominican Republic focused on gaining a global perspective of health disparities and examining social justice.  The program also offered homestays with local families, language classes, guest lectures from local experts, service learning projects in the community, and excursions to cultural and historical sites.

In Fall 2018, a new program in India focused on learning about the origins of yoga and meditation in Ayurvedic Medicine. Ten graduate students travelled to Pune to learn about public health, integrative health and use of traditional healing systems in a cultural context. The program was built on Prof. Shanta Dube’s research on the impact of stress on health and practices that can counteract the stress response, build resilience and promote wellbeing.

In May 2018, Prof. Monica Swahn lead students interested in global health on an educational and cultural learning adventure in Uganda, focused on public health research into alcohol misuse and harm. The program built on Dr. Swahn’s ongoing research in Uganda.

During the 2017 Maymester, Prof. Christine Stauber led a study abroad to Salvador, Brazil, where our students learned about global public health research with a focus on collective health, health promotion and epidemiology. Students lived with Brazilian families, which provided them with additional insight into the daily lives of people in this city, the capital of the state of Bahia and home to a unique Afro-Brazilian culture.

During the 2017 Maymester, Prof. Monica Swahn lead a three-week study abroad program adventure –a course on alcohol and harm in Uganda. The course covers the basic research on alcohol and harm through lectures, site visits and field trips to organizations that seek to prevent or treat alcohol problems in their community and country. The course also provides an up-close view of vulnerable communities and their residents, particularly the youth.

In May 2016, students from the School of Public Health visited Salvador, Bahia, Brazil to learn about global public health issues facing the country, including the Zika virus outbreak and the related issue of microcephaly. Students also spent time learning about Afro-Brazilian culture and took in the natural beauty of Bahia with a visit to Lençois.

In May 2016, students from the School of Public Health traveled to Kampala, Uganda, to learn about the global epidemiology of alcohol use and alcohol-related harm, particularly among young people living in the city’s slums. Their three-week course included visiting a rural village, meeting with organziatons working in alcohol abuse prevention and spotting wildlife during a daylong safari.

In July 2015, students from the School of Public Health and the Department of Geosciences visited Shanghai, China. Their two-week course put them in the classroom and community, side by side with Chinese students from top-ranked Fudan University. The program focused on the use of mapping technology to study public health challenges in China.