Vama Jhumkhawala

Certificate:

Epidemiology of Chronic Disease

Practicum:

SESSTIM Marseille Health Literacy Survey 2019 Project

Practicum Position: 

Graduate Student Researcher  

How did you find your practicum opportunity and what made you want to apply to this practicum?  

I found this practicum opportunity through the Office of Field Practice CourseWorks page. I decided to apply to this practicum because I knew I wanted to gain skills that I did not previously have. This practicum was a quantitative analysis of survey data, which is something I have not done before. In addition, as someone interested in the social factors that impact health, health literacy is an important topic that I did not have much exposure to. I felt that this practicum would be a great opportunity to explore a new aspect of public health, while also learning about health in countries outside of the United States.

What were your main responsibilities in this role? 

My main responsibilities in this role were to conduct a data analysis project on the HLS-19 survey data. I worked with my supervisor to determine a project, and conduct the necessary analyses using SPSS to find conclusions and recommendations for health literacy policy. I met with my supervisor once a week and attended team meetings weekly as well to discuss other projects that were using the same dataset. I also met with a French teacher along with other Mailman students completing French practicums to learn about the French language and culture, as this was a remote practicum. 

What were some unexpected things you've learned?

I learned that I was a lot better at French than I anticipated! I also learned a lot about survey data collection, and how to quantify measures such as health literacy, which has quite a broad definition. I found that health literacy was quite interesting and that there is many avenues that are still necessary to explore in this field in order to better understand the mechanisms of how health literacy impacts health. 

How has your practicum influenced or contributed to your career goals? 

It is through this practicum that I learned about my interest in health literacy. I do think that this is a field that I might consider more seriously within my career. In addition, learning data analysis skills in SPSS is definitely useful in my career, as I hope to continue to do research, particularly within the social sciences. Though I did not anticipate liking health literacy as much as I do, I am grateful for the opportunity to be exposed to this field and look forward to continuing work in this realm of public health!