Health Studies major Erica Schan will spend her summer interning with St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital where she’ll provide outreach support for numerous public health initiatives.
“They offer a lot of great programs like bicycle safety, lactation classes for new moms, and water safety. I will get to jump in on a lot of different projects,” she said.
She’ll also have a chance to job shadow the hospital’s Child Life Specialists – health professionals who work with children and their families to help them understand medical procedures and cope with illness.
“That’s the career I am most interested in,” Schan said. “Initially, I was excited about this internship just for the experience in public health outreach, but they’re actually going to get me a foot in the door with the hospital, which is something I didn’t expect.”
Schan applied for the internship after attending the Department of Public Health and Population Science’s Meet and Greet, a biannual event that connects students with dozens of community-serving organizations in the Boise area. The event provides a platform for students to practice networking while learning about internship, volunteer, and employment opportunities.
“I knew St. Luke’s would be at the Meet and Greet, so as soon as I got to the event I sat down at their table.” Schan introduced herself and told them she was interested in an internship. They followed up with an application and an interview, and then offered her the position.
“I had heard about the internship before the event, but the Meet and Greet really motivated me to get my resume together and actually pursue it. Having the event set up for students to go and actually talk to someone just makes it really easy.”
Stay tuned for the next Meet and Greet (Fall 2019) and find your next professional opportunity – you never know where it may lead!