Applied Practice Experience (APEx)

Environmental Health Sciences Master's students are required to complete a three-month practicum. The practicum—essentially an internship in the field—is both a required component and highlight of the Master's experience. Our students work alongside public health professionals, experience the day-to-day realities of the field, and apply what they’ve learned in class to advance the cause of public health.

2024

• Alameda County Public Health Department
  Implementing photovoice as an evaluation tool and acting as a photovoice liaison for community partners
• Ami Zota Lab, Mailman School of Public Health
  Assisting with the Silk Press Swap Study and conducted a literature review and analysis  related to how climate change and hurricanes impact abortion access in the southern United States
• Ana Navas-Acien, Mailman School of Public Health
  Researching blood DNA methylations data on the Strong Heart Study involving Native American populations
• APTIM
  Authored a public health blog series on the importance of environmental health, climate change, radon, and heat resilient cities
• Coffee Elf Inc.
  Conducting market analysis on sustainable personal care products and designed a sustainable marketing plan
• Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health, Mailman School of Public Health
  Analyzing data on community rice preference and arsenic in urine and rice samples
• Columbia World Projects
  Designing survey tools to combat household air pollution in Ghana
• Consulting Testing Services Inc. (CTSI)
  On-site inspections taking indoor air quality, water and fungal samples and preparing building engineers for state inspections and building safety regulations
• COVID-19 Mother Baby Outcomes (COMBO) Initiative
  Creating documentation for survey tools and creating REDCap surveys to assess mental well-being and social support
• Eco-Epidemiology Lab, Mailman School of Public Health
  Analyzing the transmission and public perception of tick-borne diseases in urban greenspaces
• Environmental Working Group
  • Briefing a legal team on current scientific literature and policies/regulations regarding toxic chemicals in various industries
  • Conducting research on critical issues in food systems and examining food brands making false claims about their environmental impact
• H.E.A.L.T.H. for Youth
  Staten Island community health needs assessment survey
• ICF
  Supporting literature reviews that identify environmental exposure relationships with health outcomes from public sector clients
• Kleiman Laboratory, Mailman School of Public Health
  Assessing the health hazards associated with far-UVC exposure, a wavelength of radiation capable of inactivating airborne viruses
• Mailman School of Public Health
  Testing a collection of urine samples to determine selenium speciation
• mistEO
  Conducting a review on climate and health risk assessment frameworks
• New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
  Improving the agency’s understanding of indoor air quality interventions
• New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Bureau of Communicable Diseases
  Interviewing individuals with Salmonella and tracking outbreaks in New York City
• New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, The Fund for Public Health
  Interviewing mobile food vendors and commissary operators about sanitation practices and business operations
• New York League of Conservation Voters
  Participating in a project to lower the current action level of lead in drinking water in school districts from 5ppb to 1ppb
• Norman Kleiman, Mailman School of Public Health
  Researching radon concentrations and climate change in Pennsylvania
• The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York
  Analyzing arsenic levels in soil and water samples
• Universidad de Cienfuegos
  Agricultural site visits and literature review around socio-environmental education and pollution in Cienfuegos Bay
• University of Washington
  Digitizing maps for health data across all counties in the United States
• Waterfront Plan
  Collecting data on green space conditions in various neighborhoods and comparing them to the Bronx
• Weill Cornell Medicine
  Working on studies focused on further understanding and optimizing kidney transplant outcomes