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APEX

Advanced Practical EXperience in Public Health

APEX: Advanced Practical Experience in Public Health

Public Health & Society provides undergraduate students with a foundation focusing on public and global health and how issues of equity, inclusion, and social determinants of health influence health outcomes. The Advanced Practical EXperience in Public Health (APEX) program bridges the gap between public health theory and practical application through either a community-based internship or a directed research project. APEX emphasizes real-world engagement, professional development, and impactful public health projects.

Who can participate?

  • APEX is required for all Public Health & Society majors and is exclusively open to them.
  • Students must first successfully complete PUBHLTHSOC 3100 - Research Methods in Understanding Health and Society and be enrolled in Public Health & Society as a major or second major.

Maya Davis, 2024-2025 Student Ambassador

"The APEX experience, that's like basically your capstone experience in which you have an opportunity to do some kind of public health-related project within Saint Louis."

"I think an experience like the APEX experience is really going to help me catapult my public health career. And knowing that you know you can, in fact, make an impact with the things that you do, and be able to ground myself in, like, okay, this is why I do it."

How It Works

The semester before APEX

To participate in the APEX placement process, students must have first declared Public Health & Society as a major and completed all prerequisites. The APEX Coordinator will send each eligible student the APEX Student Information Survey and introductory email to begin the placement in the semester prior to APEX.

 The APEX Coordinator will communicate on a regular basis to explore potential community partners with students and facilitate the interview process. Once a potential community partner has been identified, the student must complete an interview with the community partner to help ensure this is a good fit for APEX.  After the student interviews with the community partner, the supervisor will complete the APEX Confirmation for Community Partner Supervisors Survey to indicate if they would like to accept the student for the upcoming semester.  The APEX Coordinator will continue to work with each student to secure their internship prior to the start of the semester. 

The APEX semester

Students enroll in two courses:

  • PUBHLTHSOC 4000 - APEX: Advanced Practical Experience in Public Health Seminar (1 credit). Students will be required to regularly attend the seminar and actively participate in class discussions and activities. Students will complete multiple learning reflections throughout the semester.  
  • PUBHLTHSOC 4001 - APEX: Advanced Practical Experience in Public Health Internship (3 credits). Students must complete a minimum of 140 hours with a community partner to design and/or implement public health-related, community engaged projects. 

Students will utilize the APEX timesheet to track and record their internship hours throughout the semester. The timesheet must be submitted biweekly throughout the semester. Both student and supervisor must sign the student’s timesheet at midterm and at the end of the term. Students are expected to complete a minimum of 140 hours with their community partner. Completing fewer hours will result in a commensurate reduction of the hours grade as outlined in the course syllabus.  

Students are required to create and implement a community partner deliverable which includes several phases: proposal, feedback and implementation, peer review, and final deliverable poster/presentation.  

Key Dates

Spring 2026

  • Placement process begins: October 1st, 2025
  • First day of classes: January 12th, 2026
  • Last day of classes: April 24th, 2026

Fall 2026

  • Placement process begins: January 12th, 2026
  • First day of classes: August 24th, 2026
  • Last day of classes: December 4th, 2026

APEX Faculty and Staff

Photo of Chen Reis

Chen Reis

Professor of Practice, Public Health & Society

Chen Reis is a transdisciplinary practitioner, scholar and teacher with over 20 years of experience at the intersection of public health, international human rights, and humanitarian studies.

Resources

Student Handbook

The Student Handbook is your guide to getting started

Major Requirements

Curriculum requirements and APEX information

Explore Careers

There is a lot you can do within the field of public health

Information for Community Partners

Interested in having an undergraduate student intern or researcher?

Each student requires weekly supervision and support in the development of their Student Learning Agreement and project. The professional supervising the student intern does not need to have a specific degree; however, experience within the public health profession is helpful for guiding the student’s learning experience.

If you are interested in learning more about having an undergraduate student intern, please reach out to Lindsey Anderson, the Public Health & Society APEX coordinator, or complete this interest form.

Looking for opportunities to do research outside of APEX?

The Office of Undergraduate Research can help you find research programs at WashU and beyond! They can also help you find funding, connect you to peers, and give you a place to present your findings.

 Office of Undergraduate Research