ETSU Quillen College of Medicine students have the opportunity to participate in Quillen-led, short-term overseas trips during medical school. These experiences offer a brief but immersive exposure to medicine, health systems and social determinants of health in a global context, involving direct work with underserved communities in low resource settings.
Many students describe the trips as formative, shaping their career decisions and deepening their commitment to serving vulnerable populations. Explore Quillen’s Global Health experiences to discover the opportunities available to medical students.
Global Health Experiences: Medical Students
Global Health Research and Academic Opportunities
- Summer Research Program in Global Health
- Certificate in Spanish for Health Professionals
- Global Health courses and a Global Health Certificate offered by the ETSU College of Public Health
- Global Health Track for Residents
Global Fellowships: Surgery and Primary Care
Resources
Explore More Global Health Initiatives
Belize Global Health Trips
The College of Medicine sponsors three trips to Belize each Winter for medical students, as well as faculty and students from the College of Pharmacy. Our in-country partners, the Belize Ministry of Health and Wellness and Body and Soul Ministries, provide health services for community members in rural settings.
Students participating are required to attend 5-6 predeparture meetings to prepare them for the cultural, travel, and clinical experience.
Global Health Electives: 3rd and 4th Year
Medical students can elect to participate in a two-week third-year elective or a four-week fourth-year elective at our sites in Sierra Leone, Cambodia, Zambia, Belize and Ecuador. These electives provide students with an in-depth clinical experience in a low-resource setting.
Depending on the capabilities of the host site, electives can be organized in one of several primary specialty areas: family medicine, pediatrics, OB-GYN, surgery or internal medicine. These electives help students develop cultural competence and humility, navigate ethical challenges, and enhance patient communication and diagnostic skills.
The student will be prepared through comprehensive pre-departure training, focused on the culture, language, ethics and the clinical conditions they will experience during the elective. If you know where you want to go and who you want to work with for the Global Health Elective, please email Valerie Suiter at suiterv@etsu.edu
Additional Information
Want to learn more? Email WardLP@etsu.edu
All 4th year Global Health electives will need to be submitted to and approved by Kortni Dollinger, email lindsayk@etsu.edu.