Student
Information
Pre-PA Students | Current
Students | Recent Graduates
One of the most exciting activities
during your college education can be spending time in another country
experiencing new languages and cultures and making new friends. You
can have the international experience during your PA education. There
are avenues for PA students to participate in rotations or internships
abroad. PAEA International
Affairs Committee has developed several documents related to international
rotations for PA students. PA students on international rotations are
expected to adhere to AAPA's Guidelines
for PAs Working Internationally.
Pre-PA Students
If you are in the process of researching PA programs and you are interested
in traveling abroad, there are a few programs with established international
rotations. Other schools may allow you to set up your own rotation site,
but you should discuss this option with the program director before
deciding on the school, if this is very important to you. For
a list of countries hosting international rotation site by program,
please refer to the APAP International Affairs Committee Survey on international
rotation.
Current
Students
If you wish to set up your own rotation, AAPA recommends working with
your program's clinical coordinator and with established organizations.
Your program will need to establish an affiliation agreement with the
site.
Below
is a partial list of possible clinical rotations and Spanish language
elective sites for PA students. These are places that take medical
students but they also are open to PAs. These rotations/courses
usually have fixed times during the year. Please be aware that for a
majority of rotations and internships, the student is expected to shoulder
the expense.
General Information About International
Student Activities:
American
Medical Student Association--International Health
Educational
Programmes Abroad
Rotations and Internships:
Association of Reproductive Health Professionals provides a directory
of international opportunities for medical students to study, observe, and/or participate in reproductive health care.
Child
Family Health International offers multiple types of rotations in
many countries.
Global
Health Education Consortium (GHEC)
Ensenada Mexico offers a three-week medical
Spanish course. It is a joint program between the University of California
and the Universidad de Xochicalco.
www.medicalspanish.org
The International Health Central
America Institute in Costa Rica offers a Medical Spanish/Tropical Medicine
Course with patient interaction. The course is one month long and is
offered February, April, July, and November.
To get more information, e-mail Info@ihcai.org
Medical Education Cooperation
with Cuba (MEDICC) offers several different public health focused rotations.
The experience includes Spanish language training.
www.medicc.org
University of Arizona College
of Medicine International Health offers a case based course held annually
(July) in Tucson, Arizona. http://www.globalhealth.arizona.edu/
Duke University Medical School
will offer Medical Spanish Immersion commencing Fall, 2002. Medical
Spanish Immersion provides unique opportunity for American medical personnel
to learn Spanish while performing half-day rotations at "Hospital Presidente
Juarez" in Oaxaca, Mexico. Rotations are supplemented by contextualized
language instruction and rich cultural experience.
www.medicalspanish.homestead.com
Recent
Graduates
If you are a PA student who has just graduated or will soon graduate
and you are interested in international travel, options are available
to you.
Educational
Programmes Abroad provides educational internships and professional
experiences in an international setting. The internship program is unpaid,
and all of the expenses are born by the participant. This is a good
program for people just out of PA school, or during a school break.
Click
on this link to read about a PA student's experience in Germany.
Educational Programmes Abroad
137 North Park Street
Kalamazoo, MI 49007
616/382-0139
Project
MedSend offers grants to repay student loans owed by health care
professionals while they serve as medical missionaries in medically
underserved areas of the world. Grant applicants must (1) be under the
authority of a collaborating sending agency (an "associate"); (2) be
within 18 months of leaving for career medical missions service; (3)
show fiscal responsibility and stewardship maturity; (4) be in the process
of paying off their student loans as soon as earning begins (internship,
residency, practice). Grant applications are considered three times
a year. Visit the Project
MedSend Web site for more information.
