Getting the Experience You Need to Get Into Grad School
Kate Jongbloed commented to ask "a lot of the entry level jobs that I'm looking at require a master's degree, but in order to get into grad school, they'd like you to have a bit of experience in your field. It's a catch 22! How do you recommend getting around this issue?"
People ask me that question a lot. Luckily, there is an answer that most people can achieve. Graduate schools don't need you to have experience in the exact field you want to study or work in after graduation. They just want you to have shown a real interest and commitment.
In the context of global health, that means either an international background or a health background will generally suffice, and you can do that with a bachelor's degree. There are a lot of vaguely administrative jobs you can get with an international slant - international education and exchange organizations, refugee resettlement, or even teaching English as a foreign language in the US or overseas.
There are also entry-level health jobs and volunteer work you can do in health. I was a volunteer for Planned Parenthood. I filed medical records and assisted with sexuality education programming. We had paid clinic assistants as well. Most health clinics have work like that. I know there are human services jobs open to people with bachelor's degrees, and program assistant jobs at health non-profits.
Getting that kind of experience in the US will help build the skills you need to show graduate schools you are serious, and get that first job after you finished your graduate degree.
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