Undergraduate global opportunities

Health in Denmark: 

DIS is a Danish non-profit study abroad institution in Copenhagen with summer programs taught in English. Established in 1959, DIS offers American students engaging and challenging coursework enriched by field studies, hands-on learning opportunities, and study tours in Denmark and across Europe. Cultural engagement opportunities integrate students into Danish culture and students gain academic knowledge and intercultural skills to prepare themselves for a globalized world.

Duration: six weeks, two sessions (May 21 – July 1, 2023) 

Session 1: May 21 – June 9

3 weeks | 3 credits

Childbearing and birth in Denmark: This three week customized course is designed to introduce you to healthcare, reproductive health, childbearing and birth in Denmark. Though clinical visits are not possible at this time, this course will provide hands-on and interactive learning experiences in order to better understand the Danish approach to childbearing and birth through faculty, midwives and other practitioners. 

Session 2:  June 12 – July 1 (With Study Tour!)

3 weeks | 3 credits

Choose one from the following suggested courses (more options are available on DIS website):

• Healthcare Systems: A Comparative Approach (DIS Copenhagen)
  Study Tour: Netherlands
• Human Health and Disease: A Clinical Approach (DIS Copenhagen)
  Study Tour: Berlin or Vienna
• Prostitution and the Sex Trade (DIS Copenhagen)
  Study Tour: Amsterdam
• Sustainable Development in Northern Europe (DIS Copenhagen)
  Study Tour: Norway
• Gender, Equality, and Sexuality in Scandinavia (DIS Stockholm)
  Study Tour: Berlin
• Precision Medicine: Tailored Treatment in Clinical Practice (DIS Stockholm)
  Study Tour: Dublin

Please note: The program only accepts students for the six weeks, two sessions. You cannot apply to attend one of the two sessions. 

Learn more and Apply: Nursing Denmark on MCOMPASS

Nursing: Global Health Nursing Internship Program (Ghana, India, Liberia) 

There are many study abroad opportunities offered through the University of Michigan that you may consider. If you are following the global health minor, please make sure to check with Beste Windes (beste@umich.edu) about your plans prior to committing. Visit M-Compass website to review all study abroad programs.

Not all global experiences need to be connected with earning academic credit. Some UMSN professors routinely take students abroad with them to assist in research projects, an option that may be more flexible in terms of time commitment than study abroad programs.

Another research opportunity open to undergraduates is the U-M Center for Human Growth and Development: Minority Health and Health Disparities International Research Training program (MHIRT). These are three-month research positions with U-M faculty to international placements. Accepted students are awarded a monthly stipend, living expenses, round trip airfare to the placement site, and foreign and domestic expenses incurred while on the program. Undergraduate and graduate placements are available. Applicants must be African-American, Hispanic American, Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander or Rural Appalachian.

Like research opportunities, internship and service (e.g. volunteer) engagements may be more flexible than study abroad. These opportunities are available through U-M affiliated units as well as through a number of other accredited colleges, universities and external organizations.

The Office of Global Affairs can help you set up a global internship/project with one of the UMSN global partners. If you are interested in exploring an internship/project with a UMSN Global Partner, fill out this form. The Office of Global Affairs will respond to your request after identifying potential opportunities that match your interests.

If you would like to set up an alternative immersion experience that will allow you to gain intercultural skills through local community engagement, volunteering or internship type activities, please email us your proposal. While we do not require you to work a certain number of weeks or hours, the project needs to be of a scope that requires at least 3 weeks to complete, that will be of value to the community you are engaging with; and help you accomplish your learning objectives(s) in the global health minor. If you have an alternative immersion experience that you would like us to review for global health minor, please contact beste@umich.edu with the following information:

• Community organization and contact person you will work with
• Brief description of the project, including the objectives, community need, methods, and timeline (as it applies.)
•  Description of your learning objectives to take on this community engagement experience.
• Once completed, please obtain a letter or an email from the organization confirming completion of your experience/internship.

U-M has a wealth of student organizations devoted to global health, many of which offer opportunities for volunteering and service learning abroad listed on the Maize Pages. To give you examples, many nursing students have attended programs through the following U-M Student Organizations:

• M-HEAL: M-HEAL hosts a diverse set of projects at a variety of stages in the design process from problem definition to prototyping. These projects are committed to creating health care solutions that improve access to health care in underserved communities.
• Timmy Global Health: Timmy Global Health exists to expand access to healthcare, empowering students and volunteers to tackle global health challenges firsthand. We accomplish this by strengthening community-based health and education initiatives and empowering young people to share their energy and compassion.
• Quito Project: The Quito Project’s mission is to collaborate with local partners in developing evidence-based solutions that support and build capacity in the health, educational, and social sectors.
• Alternative Spring Break: Our goal is to cultivate a community on the University of Michigan campus of Active Citizens who take part in positive social change for their lives during spring break, their college careers, and their lives after college.
• Partners in Health Engage at the University of Michigan: PIH Engage at the University of Michigan has three primary goals: 1) to raise awareness about health as a fundamental human right, 2) to lobby members of congress for expanded political support and financial resources to ensure health and healthcare for the world's poor, and 3) directly mobilize financial resources to support the mission of Partners in Health and its sister organizations around the globe.
• Michigan International Internship & Service program (MIISP) provides a year-long series of workshops that prepare undergraduates for summer internships or service projects abroad.
• Residential College Spanish Language Internship program is an engaged learning course that is open to all undergraduate students and links Spanish-speaking students with community-based organizations to provide unique service learning opportunities in the Latino community.
• LS&A International Internship program offers summer internship placements for returning undergraduates in a wide variety of locations and fields.