Janina Stauke from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine shares her internship experience

September 17, 2024

2024, Interns, Uncategorized, NEWS

Janina Stauke from LSHTM was a CIF Intern during the 2024 Summer internship program, where she contributed to a project focused on understanding why individuals experience impoverishment due to health spending. In her role, conducted comprehensive literature review and has been involved in scientific paper development.

Janina kindly provided her feedback through interview below:

A: Hi, my name is Janina Stauke, and I work as a research associate in infectious disease epidemiology at the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany’s National Institute for Public Health. Since last year, I’ve also been pursuing my PhD in Public Health Policy at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). I was thrilled to learn about the CIF Internship Programme through the Doctoral College at the RKI. I am extremely grateful to my employer for providing me with the flexibility to pursue this opportunity and benefit from such a valuable experience.

How you describe your experience as being Intern at CIF?

A: I really enjoyed joining the CIF research team in Georgia for six weeks. I was involved in a project evaluating the implementation of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and policy reforms, and I was able to learn a lot both methodologically and about the national context. Although the topic was mostly new to me, I found it rewarding to draw connections to concepts from my university courses as well as my current and previous work experience. The team on-site was extremely welcoming and treated me as a valued colleague, providing a collaborative environment that made me feel fully integrated despite the short duration of my stay.

And what can I say – Georgia, as an amazing country, was certainly captivating.

How did the internship experience help you grow professionally?

A: The internship experience was incredibly valuable for my professional growth, especially as I plan to conduct a policy analysis for my PhD. I’m very grateful to have had the opportunity to gain practical insight into this field through the internship. Even though it was a relatively short period, I was able to gather many important impressions and lessons. I return to my work with a more equipped methodological toolkit, which will be especially useful as I approach my upcoming data collection and continue my research.

What advice would you give future interns?

A: This might sound obvious, but my advice is: don’t hesitate to communicate your goals and interests. I’m incredibly grateful that I outlined my preferences and the specific methods and skills I wanted to explore in my application. The research team discussed these with me during the interview and took my requests into consideration, even though they didn’t entirely match the original internship description. As a result, the internship felt tailored to my interests, and it definitely met my expectations. So, don’t be afraid to express what you hope to gain from the experience!

How could the internship program be improved to better meet future interns’ needs?

A: Although the entire CIF team speaks excellent English, the primary office language is largely Georgian. There were moments when I would have liked to be involved in more meetings, but I completely understand the additional effort this would require. Aside from that, I was truly impressed with both the seamless logistical organization and the quality of the program’s content. Overall, the experience was highly efficient, and I felt well-supported throughout.