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Reflective practice (RP) is a key skill for developing one’s professional practice. It has, however, not been unanimously prioritised in public health (PH) competency and education frameworks. Reflection activities are often unstructured in higher education. There is also a dearth of literature on the RPs of undergraduate PH students. This study aims to explore in greater depth how RP helps undergraduate PH students explore their own learning in internships.

Reflection prompts were designed using the DEAL model. 124 written reflection entries from 32 students were collected and analysed thematically using a deductive-inductive approach. The conceptual framework of internship learning goals by Ash and Clayton (2009) was used to guide the deductive analysis.

Three themes were identified: initial engagement with reflective learning; gradual integration of reflective learning, and a transformative phase involving professional development, personal growth, civic learning, growth through struggle, being confronted with differences in expectations, and skill acquisition.

This study extends the limited evidence regarding RP in undergraduate non-medical PH education, and contributes toward informing the revision of undergraduate PH programmes, for example, by integrating structured reflection earlier in the curricula, and establishing/supporting mentorship programmes between institutions. The findings call for PH educators to be more intentional in creating opportunities to nurture RP among budding PH professionals.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a contingent shift to remote working and learning worldwide. However, little is known regarding the impact of this shift on internships. Moreover, much of the available literature studies on internships are focused largely on perceptions by students, less so by supervisors. This paper describes the impact of COVID-19 on public health (PH) internships and examines interns' and supervisors' perspectives on their experiences in internships before and during the pandemic.

A cross-sectional study design was conducted on two cohorts of undergraduate students and their supervisors in Singapore. Participants were surveyed using questionnaires with both close-ended and open-ended questions about various aspects of the internship experience. Data were triangulated from these surveys and module evaluation reports, and analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively.

COVID-19 disrupted internships significantly, with a reduction in the number of placements offered and necessary changes to the internship scope. Overall, the internship experience has been positive. Supervisors and e-interns reported high levels of satisfaction and documented learning gains such as the development of technical skills and soft skills unique to remote work.

The study findings fill current gaps in the literature on supervisor perceptions and internship experiences during COVID-19. Recommendations are proposed to optimize e-internships, a potentially authentic workplace in the post-COVID era.