UW-Eau Claire Study Abroad Experiences for Health Career Interested Students
Harlaxton, England
Spring 2026 - Organic Chemistry 326 Offered
Pre health, BMB, Biochemistry or Chem Majors may be interested.
Harlaxton webpage: detailed information for academics, costs, and life at Harlaxton. This includes a full list of classes offered in Spring 2026 and their UWEC equivalencies (under the “Academics” tab) and the detailed, line-item list of costs (under the “Program Costs” tab)
Other Health Related Courses- Spring 2026
- Special Topics in Neuroscience: Lived Experiences Through the Healthcare System and Beyond
- KINS 200: Orientation to Kinesiology
- PSYC 376: Psychology of Perception
- PH 115: Global Health
- Exercise/Sport Psychology (KINS Upper Division Elective)
- Introduction to Neuroscience (PSYC Lower Division Elective)
- Internships available: possibly in a health-related area
The Spring 2026 application opens in early January 2025, due April 15, 2025.
- When you apply, make sure to include your interest in taking Organic Chemistry II in the “Academic Fit” section of the required application questionnaire.
More questions? Schedule a meeting with the study abroad office.
Khon Kaen, Thailand
Summer only - Community Health Internship or Clinical Placement
Start off your experience by taking two courses: Introduction to Thai Language and Healthcare in Thailand in the first two weeks alongside other students in the internship program, allowing you to get settled into the country while making new friends.
Starting on week three, students will have very specialized schedules that will depend on the internship or assistantship specifics. During the experience, you will live with other students, allowing opportunities to socialize and meet with friends. In addition, each student will have a Thai student partner that is studying healthcare at KKU.
There are many different internship and assistantship placements available. Each internship/assistantship type has different eligibility requirements, including some necessary pre-requisites. Consult with the study abroad office on which program might work best for you.
- Shadowing-based Internships (3-credits only, 300-level)
- Sophomore standing or higher time of application.
- Successful completion of university-level biology course with lab is required; introductory course in public health or other health science field is highly desirable.
- A good fit for students with a broader academic background or those unsure what medical field they want to go into.
- Public Health or Clinic Placements (3 or 6 credits, 400-level)
- Junior standing or higher at time of application.
- Completion of one or more courses at the 400-level in biology/chemistry for clinical placements or one or more health-related courses at the 300-level for public health placements.
- Prior lab experience and a course in statistical methods are required.
- Applicants are expected to be knowledgeable of the U.S. healthcare system structure.
- International Research Assistantship (3 or 6 credits, 400-level)
- Junior standing or higher at time of application.
- Completion of three or more upper-division courses in science or health that provide a relevant foundation for the research project.
- Lab experience beyond an introductory level and a course in statistical methods are required.
More questions? Schedule a meeting with the study abroad office.
Heredia, Costa Rica
Fall 2026 - Biochemistry 352 Offered
Internships (semester students) -Shadowing internships are available in the Fall and Spring semesters to those who have completed SPAN 202 before the program start.
Courses that may be of interest to health related students (for a full list see the Academic Section on the Costa Rica, Heredia Page)
- Span 420 Spanish for Health Professions
- Kins 312 Psychology/Sociology of Sport
- Biol 214 Human Anatomy and Physiology
- Psyc Elec Psychology of Happiness
- Kins 450 Sports Nutrition, Exercise, and Performance
- Kins 308 Exercise Physiology
More questions? Schedule a meeting with the study abroad office.
Puebla, Mexico
Summer only - Health Professions Track- Internship and Coursework
Summer students choose a program track in either Spanish Language & Culture or Spanish for the Professions
- All tracks are 6 credits
- The professions tracks consist of: Business, Education, or Healthcare. They are for intermediate to advanced Spanish speakers and include ~90 hours of observation, internship, or volunteering in a relevant organization.
- Credits Earned- Span 420 and Span 930U (prerequisites for both courses is Span 301)
More questions? Schedule a meeting with the study abroad office.
NOTE:
There are other programs that may work for pre health students, consult with the study abroad office and your ARCC and HCC advisors.
- Australia, Southern Cross University (BIOL and KINS, in particular)
- Australia, Perth (has offered CHEM 452/453 in the past, but doesn't currently)
- Scotland, Aberdeen (has offered CHEM 326 and 352 in the past, but don't currently)
- Scotland, Stirling (BIOL and KINS, in particular)
- Ireland, Limerick (has offered CHEM 325, 326, and 352 in the past, along with many other pre-health courses)
- Italy, Lorenzo de’ Medici (has offered CHEM 325 and 326 in the past)
UW-Eau Claire Domestic and International Immersion Experiences
Program Locations: Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Hiroshima
Program Dates: Summer 2025; July 6-19, 2025
Frequency: Program runs every year.
Target Student Population: Program will accept approximately 12 students. Open to all students.
Faculty / Staff Leader(s): Professors Marquell Johnson, Nick Beltz, and Saori Braun (program consultant)
Corresponding Courses: KINS495: Directed Study in Kinesiology (1 credit)
Additional Attributes: R2
Program Locations: Taipei, Tainan, and Taitung Taiwan
Program Dates: Summer 2025; May 17-June 10, 2025 (dates are tentative)
Frequency: Program runs every year.
Target Student Population: Program will accept approximately 10-12 students. Open to all students.
Faculty / Staff Leader(s): Professors Der-Fa Lu and Lorraine Smith
Corresponding Courses: N/A
Additional Attributes: R2
More questions? Contact Jeff R. DeGrave, Ph.D. degravjr@uwec.edu or visit the Intercultural Immersion Website
National Student Exchange Program
There are nearly 180 schools currently in the NSE consortium, including schools in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands. Our students can study at one of these schools for a semester or an academic year, pay UW-Eau Claire tuition, and earn resident credits which count toward their graduation requirement.
Attend information sessions in the Fall Semester for application information.
Additional information: NSE - UWEC Campus Site | NSE - National Site
NATIONAL STUDENT EXCHANGE – 240 Schofield Hall 715-836-2003 nse@uwec.edu
Global Health Clinical and Volunteer Experiences
Learning about healthcare from other global perspectives is a very important part of your pre-health education, but before seeking clinical experiences abroad or engaging in global health volunteer opportunities, you should seriously consider some very important things. There are numerous situations where students on international trips are asked and expected to practice medicine (including veterinary medicine) or dentistry without proper education, training and supervision. You need to be aware of the real risk of some well-intentioned programs doing more harm than good. It is strongly advised that you explore your personal motivations for participating in a global health experience and research the organization that is offering the experience.
Work with the Health Careers Center and your ARCC Advisor early to create a plan that works for you and your health career goals. Consider locations with course work and experiences that might enhance your application to professional school.
Useful resources:
- Read the guidelines provided by the AAMC. (American Association of Medical Colleges) and ADEA (American Dental Education Association) for providing patient care outside the US.
- Read Considerations for Serving Ethically. (University of Kansas, Center for Service Learning)
- Read the information provided at Global Ambassadors for Patient Safety. (GAPS) and take the free online GAPS workshop (University of Minnesota, Pre-Health Student Resource Center).
- Research the organizations that offer international health experiences and carefully consider any “red flags” like those listed below. (From Preparing for International Health Experiences: A Practical Guide.)
- Organizations that see high numbers of patients in a very short time.
- Organizations that allow unlicensed or non-professional students to do professional activities such as triaging patients, taking histories and physicals, doing physical exams and dispensing medications (particularly when there is no redundancy with a licensed/trained health professional repeating all patient care activities done by the students).
- Opportunities that over-promise big impacts in a short time.
- Organizations that reduce the challenges of health disparities to simple causes and/or simple fixes.
- Organizations that are not transparent about the use of fees and/or are trying to profit off of volunteering goodwill.
- Organizations that focus narrowly on the benefit for volunteers (such as the benefits to an application or resume), rather than the benefit to the community served by the volunteers.
- Organizations that do not measure their impacts on communities or evaluate their work.
