What kind of projects qualify as PHASE Internships?

PHASE Internships should be developed based on a public health practice need. The main objective is to expose JHSPH graduate students to various aspects of public health practice in a state or local health department setting. Projects should be less about academic research and data ‘crunching’ more about the impact(s) of the project on public health policy. To see the types of projects PHASE Interns have participated in, please click here.

How long should a PHASE Internship last?

PHASE Internships should be developed to cover 24 consecutive weeks. The JHSPH academic calendar runs on a quarterly system, so PHASE begins in the 2nd term (October 26, 2009) and ends at the end of the 4th term (May 21, 2009). JHSPH students have a January Intersession Break which runs from January 4 - 15, 2010. If you require your intern to work through the Intersession, please indicate that on the Internship Application.

How much time should I expect my PHASE Intern to devote to the Internship?

PHASE Interns are expected to spend a minimum of 4-5 hours per week, ON-SITE, towards their internship.  This is an expected average, and from week-to-week, the time spent at DHMH or at the LHD should be negotiated with the student. Most interns are full-time students, and therefore will have relatively demanding academic schedules.  Please keep this in mind when negotiating the time that will be spent on the internship.

How many interns can I precept?

It is recommended that each preceptor only be responsible for ONE intern. If your project requires more than one intern, please consider revising the project description so that it can be submitted as separate and distinct projects with separate supervisors/preceptors.

Which agencies can participate in PHASE?

Due to the rigor of the JHSPH Graduate Program, and therefore the limited amount of time students can spend traveling, PHASE Internships will be limited to the following agencies:

Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH)

Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE)

Baltimore City Health Department

Baltimore County Health Department

Anne Arundel County Health Department

Harford County Health Department

Howard County Health Department

If you are interested in having an JHSPH graduate student as an intern, but are not one of the agencies in the above list, please contact Henry Taylor at htaylor@jhsph.edu who will be able to assist you in project development and placement.

Who selects my PHASE Intern?

A panel consisting of JHSPH faculty, the PHASE Course Director and the PHASE Program Manager will serve as the PHASE Selection Committee and review the applications that were submitted by students. From this list, we will select no more than 5 interested and qualified students and ask YOU, THE PROSPECTIVE PRECEPTOR, to interview the student(s) during the week of September 23-October 2, 2009. These interviews can be in person or over the phone, and do not need to be more than 15 minutes in length. By Friday, October 2, the preceptors should submit their list of acceptable/not acceptable candidates to the PHASE Selection Committee. The Committee will use the preceptors' input and make suitable placements to the respective PHASE internships.

Please note, it is of the utmost importance that prospective preceptors provide as much detail in their internship description. If there are specific skills and qualifications you would like your intern to possess, please provide this information when you submit an internship.