NOTE: SIT will make every effort to maintain its programs as described. To respond to emergent situations, like COVID-19, SIT may have to modify programs.
Understand the pioneering links between public health, gender, and community action in India and Thailand.
WHY STUDY HEALTH IN INDIA?
India, the most populous democracy on Earth, is also home to a 5,000-year-old indigenous medicine system. From your base in New Delhi, the nation’s capital and hub for policymakers and global health organizations, explore both ancient and cutting-edge approaches to local and international public health. Travel to under-resourced communities to conduct extensive fieldwork; gain an understanding of inclusion and access to healthcare; examine policy advocacy for the right to health services; and participate in a special focus on reproductive and children’s health. In prepping for a weeklong workshop with a community health organization, study relevant public health programs in India and Thailand and learn how the dynamics of gender and community affect public-health access in a field-study context. With New Delhi hosting more than 300 international and 1,000 local non-governmental organizations actively involved in public health and development, this program offers an ideal opportunity to build contacts, network, and collaborate with a diverse range of public health agencies and experts.
Please visit the
SIT Study Abroad website for details on the program highlights and details of coursework,
educational excursions, and housing
.
KEY TOPICS
- Learn about healthcare and medical tourism in India and Thailand
- Study the role of community health workers in the healthcare system
- Explore public health challenges: water, sanitation, and environment
- Investigate the management of diseases and mental health
- Witness regional and grassroots approaches to healthcare access
- Understand “health” and its relationship to human fulfillment
MONEY MATTERS
SIT is an all-inclusively priced study abroad program – including academics costs, excursions, accommodations and meals, airport transfers, and health insurance. Be sure to discuss how study abroad costs are handled at your school with your study abroad advisor and read the website for more specific information.
SCHOLARSHIPS
CONTACT SIT STUDY ABROAD
NOTE: SIT will make every effort to maintain its programs as described. To respond to emergent situations, like COVID-19, SIT may have to modify programs. Visit the SIT website for more details.
Examine Explore the links between public health, gender, and community action in India and Thailand.
Program Highlights
- Study in New Delhi, India’s central hub for policymakers and organizations active in the field of public health.
- Spend extensive time in the field.
- Focus on women, children, tribal communities, and other underserved populations.
- Participate in a weeklong workshop with an NGO or public health organization to learn about community health efforts in awareness building and advocacy with the government.
- Learn Hindi.
- Learn about India’s 5,000-year-old indigenous medicine system, with special focus on Ayurveda and yoga.
- Choose an Independent Study Project or internship to enhance your intercultural and professional skills.
Please visit the SIT Study Abroad website for details on program courses (including syllabi), educational excursions, and housing.
Independent Study
During the final four weeks of the program, you can choose to use your new language and cultural skills and the academic knowledge you have acquired to complete an Independent Study Project (ISP) on a topic of interest to you or complete an Internship with a local community organization, research organization, business, government agency, or international NGO
The ISP is conducted in North India or in another approved location in India. You will be matched with an ISP advisor who will work with you on the design, implementation, and evaluation of the research project. ISP advisors include professors of public health; environment, health, and human rights activists; health policy planners and advocates; and healthcare professionals.
Sample topics:
- Traditional healing practices including Ayurveda and yoga
- Traditional medicine approaches to mental healthcare and psychological wellbeing in India
- Maternal and child health issues and practices
- International, national, and regional responses to epidemics and pandemics
- Health equity and disability
SIT internships are hands on and reflective. In addition to completing the internship, you will submit a paper processing your learning experience on the job and analyzing an issue important to the organization you interned with, and/or you will design a socially responsible solution to a problem identified by the organization.
Topics and placements may vary according to the availability of each institution. Sample internship sites:
- Learning about traditional healthcare practices and holistic and traditional philosophy in Ayurveda and yoga at Kayakalp
- Learning about Jamkhed’s community health model at Comprehensive Rural Health Project
- Taking stock of LGBTQ rights and women’s access to healthcare in India at Naz Foundation
- Gaining an understanding of complex, interdisciplinary approaches to sustainable development and public health at Seva Mandir
- Learning about issues, challenges, and ways forward with regard to public health in a Himalayan rural community at Aarohi
Key Topics of Study
- Public health systems in India and Thailand
- Indian systems of medicine (Ayurveda and yoga)
- Social determinants of health (poverty, gender, and caste) and health equity
- Public health challenges: water, sanitation, and environment
- The scourge of malnutrition and responses of the community
- The political economy of health and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- Regional and grassroots approaches to improving access to healthcare
Money Matters
Be sure to discuss how study abroad costs are handled at your school with your study abroad advisor.
SIT tuition and room and board fees include the following:
- All educational costs, including educational excursions
- All accommodations and meals for the full program duration
- Transportation to and from the airport, and on all educational excursions
- Health and accident insurance
Scholarships:
- SIT awards nearly $1.6 million in scholarships and grants annually.
- All scholarships and grants are need-based.
- Awards generally range from $500 to $5,000.
- The SIT Pell Grant Match provides matching grants to all students receiving Federal Pell Grant funding when it is applied to an SIT Study Abroad semester program.
- Contact the financial aid and/or study abroad office(s) at your college or university to learn if your school’s scholarships and grants and federal and state aid programs can be applied to an SIT Study Abroad program.
Contact SIT Study Abroad