With support from the Hawkeye Experience Grant, University of Iowa public health student Aden Baldridge gained hands-on experience in South Africa that has played a key role in his education and career goals.
Story: Madison Schuler
Photography: John Emigh
Published: Feb. 2, 2026
On his first day at a government-run community health facility in Cape Town, South Africa, Aden Baldridge followed a health education officer through the clinic. They spoke with pregnant mothers about fetal alcohol syndrome, discussed vaccination schedules, and answered questions about substance use and sexual health.
For Baldridge, it was an impactful — and defining — introduction to public health work.
“I was not prepared for that,” he says. “It made me really uncomfortable, but it kind of pushed me, which I loved.”
Baldridge went to South Africa through the Hawkeye Experience Grant, which awards stipends for undergraduates who seek learning experiences outside the classroom. He learned about the internship during his sophomore year when he took Career Planning: Exploring Careers in Public Health, a class that outlines how students can fulfill experiential learning requirements through internships, study abroad, or research.
“I knew I wanted an internship. I didn’t want to do research,” says Baldridge, a third-year public health major from Port Byron, Illinois. “When they talked about going abroad through the Hawkeye Experience Grant, I thought, ‘This is possible.’”
Baldridge began at Iowa on the pre-med track. His introduction to the public health field came during a Hawkeye Visit Day organized by the College of Public Health. He learned about the field’s emphasis on prevention and community-level health. He decided to switch his major to public health.
“I knew I wanted to help people,” Baldridge says. “Public health was holistic health care, looking at community-level health. It really spoke to me.”
Hawkeye Experience Grant
Hands-on learning opportunities such as internships, research, and study abroad can greatly enhance Iowa students’ personal, professional, and academic success.
Hawkeye Experience Grants help cover the costs of applied learning experiences outside the classroom. They can assist with fees and other expenses such as food, rent, utilities, and travel.
Baldridge chose to go to South Africa because he had never traveled abroad and he wanted to work with different communities, develop his cross-cultural communication skills, and learn how public health systems function outside the United States.
“I wanted to do public health work in areas that might not be as well served,” Baldridge says. “I wanted to really get into the communities and do more community-level work.”
Baldridge interned at the Dunoon Community Health Center, where he counseled patients on safe-sex practices, vaccinations, maternal health, and chronic disease management. He helped to develop health education materials, such as presentations and infographics focused on early intervention to keep patients out of hospitals. He also worked with the clinic’s administration on community needs assessments — a process that identifies strengths, needs, and gaps in services — to support safer, healthier communities.
Baldridge also traveled to neighborhoods around Cape Town to speak with residents and provide health materials and resources to prevent hospital visits.
“I think that was public health in its true form. You’re not just sitting at a desk working. You’re running around, you’re doing different things,” Baldridge says.
Baldridge learned one of his biggest lessons while creating mental health education materials. He realized that some terminology he had used — “anxiety” instead of “stress,” for example — did not match how Cape Town residents would describe their experiences.
“I didn’t realize how much of my beliefs were based on my own experiences,” Baldridge says. “The biggest takeaway for me was not judging, not having these preconceived notions — or when you do, try to put them in the back of your mind — and just jump into that community, ask those questions.”
Living and working in South Africa challenged assumptions Baldridge did not realize he held, including perceptions of safety and ideas about “common sense” health knowledge.
“You don’t know what someone knows until you’re actually involved in that culture,” he says. “You need to be open to learning.”
Baldridge says the experience reaffirmed his commitment to public health and community-based work. He also says the internship has spurred him to pursue a master’s degree in public health so he can better serve communities.
Baldridge encourages students to apply for the Hawkeye Experience Grant.
“I’m telling people, as a public health ambassador, you should go abroad,” he says.