Time abroad as a student can simply just be a vacation, and that’s a reasonable choice. But if you’re interested pre-health or public health and want your time abroad to mean something beyond just a typical trip, it’s worth looking into what student travel with purpose actually involves, and what makes it actually ethical.
What Makes Student Travel With Purpose Different From Other Travel
Travelling with purpose means the community you’re visiting sets the agenda based on their specific needs and cultural context. You simply arrive as a learner, working alongside local professionals who know the area and its unique health challenges far better than you do.
Participating in global health always starts with listening and with practising cultural humility. It also means supporting work the community chose and that will continue after you leave.
On a MEDLIFE Service Learning Trip, your role is to learn about the cultural contexts and lived realities of our partner communities, and assist local professionals in carrying out healthcare, education, and development outreach. The idea underneath it is simple: good global service follows local leadership and responds to needs the community has identified itself.
What You Learn In The Field
MEDLIFE’s Service Learning Trips take place in Peru, Ecuador, Guatemala, Tanzania, and Costa Rica. Working alongside local physicians, nurses, and community organizers, you’ll see how primary care and prevention work in practice. You’ll also see how the social determinants of health play out within an actual underserved community. Providing hands-on care is the job of the licensed medical professionals.
Facilitated reflection during the trip also helps you make sense of what you’re seeing. The goal is to come home with a clearer view of the ethical questions in global health, and of why long-term partnership matters more than any single visit.
Bringing It Back To Campus
The learning doesn’t stop when you leave. A campus MEDLIFE chapter is a natural place to lead a debrief or talk through what you saw with other students who are passionate about global health and service. Many chapters also organize local service projects, which keeps the work going closer to home.
When you share your experience with people back home, keep the focus on the systems and the partnership, not on individual hardship. Don’t share photos, names, or personal stories of community members without their consent. The primary goal is not framing yourself as the savior, but rather a participant in a larger system of ethical outreach and collaboration.
Learn more about MEDLIFE chapters here!
Plan Your Trip With Us!
Student travel with purpose connects what you learn in class to how health equity works on the ground, and to the communities doing that work all year. If you’re ready to get started today, consider joining or starting a MEDLIFE chapter today or enrolling in an upcoming service learning trip. Fill out the form below to contact our team!