Elizabeth Maples believes strongly that the Deep South Center for Occupational Health & Safety provides graduate students an opportunity to pursue a successful and satisfying career. 

Elizabeth Maples, left, wholeheartedly believes in the program — and so do the students who come from across the country to attend the program.

"She has a really fascinating job," Maples says. "Her research is on respirator-fit testing. She is trying to determine which respirators work best with certain facial dimensions. It's a great job and a fun job, and I couldn't be happier that her training happened right here at UAB." 

The Deep South Center is a consortium of UAB and Auburn University funded by NIOSH. It offers graduate and post-graduate programs in occupational medicine, occupational health nursing, industrial hygiene and occupational safety and ergonomics. Kent Oestenstad, Ph.D., is the center's director. 

Recruiting opportunities

The program attracts graduate students throughout the United States. Graduates from Birmingham-Southern College, the University of North Alabama, Florida State, Eastern Kentucky and University of New Mexico are enrolled or recently have graduated. 

"Our students are able to work with some of the top companies in the Southeast and the nation," Maples says. "We have graduates working at Disney, Coca-Cola, 3M, Honda, Hyundai and Mercedes, for example. And these are exciting, fascinating jobs. Who would think you would need someone in safety and health at Disney? But it's amazing what those folks do behind the scenes. You think about all of the waste produced and the mechanical rides and events and it's a major undertaking." 

Students also have an opportunity to pursue careers in the mining industry and in the public sector, including the CIA, the CDC and academia. 

Multidisciplinary study

The Deep South Center is one of only 17 U.S. centers funded by NIOSH. Students interested in pursuing industrial hygiene and occupational safety-specialist positions study in the School of Public Health. The School of Nursing trains nurses specifically to coordinate and implement wellness programs and medical surveillance. 

Auburn University students study occupational safety, human factor studies and safety and ergonomics in that school's College of Engineering. 

Many of the students enrolled in the program are chemistry or biology majors, although Maples says they have had psychology and philosophy majors join the two-year program, too. 

"We're fortunate to have students who come here that really want to make a difference in people's lives," Maples says. "We see that when they are here and when we follow them after they leave. Yes, they make good money - in the $70,000 range and upward with a doctorate - but they also like what they do. They have an opportunity to work with people and do it in a challenging, dynamic career." 

Summer attraction

Maples says a career in occupational health and safety is not something often at the forefront of many students' minds, so the center works to attract students in a variety of ways. 

One of those is its summer Environ-mental & Occupational Safety & Health Institute, which is open to students who have completed three years of college, have a 3.0 GPA or better and are pursuing degrees in engineering, biology, chemistry, physics, nursing and health-sciences programs. 

"Safety is not sexy," Maples says. "You think of pocket protectors, goggles and ear muffs. We wanted to think of a way to engage the younger students and give them an opportunity to come to the institute and learn more about occupational and environmental health and safety."

Undergraduates attending the institute learn the nuances of the profession from graduate students and practitioners working in the field. They also take field trips to local industry where they observe workers and receive hands-on training. 

"The idea is to expose people to this field - not just industrial hygiene, safety and nursing - but the whole concept of occupational safety," Maples says. 

Up to 12 students can attend the summer institute. A letter of recommendation with a statement of major and GPA from the student's advisor and an application must be submitted by Friday, May 15 to be eligible for this summer's institute. There is no cost for the program and a limited number of stipends are available for students to attend.

Contact Maples for more information at dsc@uab.edu, call 934-7178 or learn more at www.uab.edu/dsc.