Pre-Health Experiences

Before pursuing a healthcare program, you must demonstrate that the career is the correct fit for you. It’s not enough to assume that it’s the right fit; admissions committees want to see proof that you’ve explored the profession. You should observe and interact with healthcare providers and patients and understand the full scope of what it means to practice.

Shadowing is a natural starting point for students exploring health professions. Shadowing is a passive act; you observe a healthcare provider in their day to day responsibilities and while you may be able to talk to the provider about the choices they make in their job, you are not directly interacting with or assisting patients. 

Direct patient care experiences allow you to interact with and assist patients. While direct patient care experiences can be volunteer-based or paid, there is typically an application and/or interview process and some training required. You will not be assisting patients at the same level as a healthcare provider, but you will be making an impact on the patient’s health and well-being.

While some health profession programs have minimum direct patient care experience requirements (for example, PA schools typically want to see 1000-4000 hours), other programs do not list a specific number. It’s important to check with the schools you’re applying to to ensure you’re meeting their minimum/average requirements.

You should gain suitable clinical experiences to demonstrate your fit and understanding of the profession. Ideally, you would have at least 150 hours of clinical experiences, with the majority of those experiences being direct patient care. Having more hours of clinical experience is only going to help you be a stronger applicant.

1. Utilize your network: Ask your personal healthcare provider or a family member’s provider if they would be willing to allow you to shadow. If you have friends who have shadowed with a provider, ask for their contact details. Join a student organization and connect with speakers and presenters through that organization. If you work/volunteer in a healthcare setting, ask providers there to connect you with their colleagues. 

2. Reach out to providers in local clinics/hospitals: While this might be daunting, time consuming, and require you to reach out through multiple methods (emailing, calling, or visiting the clinic in person), cast a wide net and be persistent and professional.

3. Connect with alumni: If you have a LinkedIn account, search for George Mason alumni who are in a career that you’re hoping to pursue or who attended a health profession school you might be interested in. Reach out with a message or connect through LinkedIn. 

In your LinkedIn profile, make sure you have a professional picture, information about your major and career aspirations, and updated contact information. 

Here’s a guide to connecting with alums on LinkedIn.

Career Services Resources

• Career Connections
• Healthcare page

Other Shadowing Experiences:

Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) Shadowing Database: https://doctorsthatdo.org/ 

Shadow Physicians at Inova Hospitals: https://www.inova.org/education/student-educational-opportunities/physician-observerships

Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (DPM) Shadowing Database: www.dpmnetwork.org

AAMC Shadowing a Doctor Guide: https://students-residents.aamc.org/aspiring-docs-fact-sheets-get-experience/shadowing-doctor

Some healthcare experiences have more patient interaction than others. While non-patient care experiences can be impactful, many health profession programs want to see direct patient care experiences. In your application, it’s important to include a detailed and accurate overview of your responsibilities and ways that you interact with patients.

• Please note that some positions require advanced training or certification in order to be eligible for the position. Mason doesn’t offer certifications, but local community colleges, technical colleges, and/or online colleges do.
• In general, it’s best to look for a patient care position that will work with/under the provider in your field of interest. For example, if you plan to go to medical school, look for a position that works directly with physicians and human patients. While you might gain general healthcare experience working with a dentist, pharmacist, or veterinarian, those are separate career paths from medical school and won’t give you directly relevant experience. 
• Research patient care positions here to learn more about the responsibilities and training/certification entailed.

Here are some common positions that are and are not considered direct patient care. Please note this is not an exhaustive list and it’s always best to check directly with the schools you plan to apply to.

Direct Patient Care:

Free Clinic Volunteer

Hospice Volunteer

Medical Mission Trip Participant

Rehab or Nursing Center Assistant

Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)

Home Care Health Aide

Nurse’s Aid

EMT/EMS/Rescue Squad

Paramedic

Medical Assistant

Medical Translator

Phlebotomist

Clinical Research Assistant

Athletic Trainer Assistant

Physical Therapy Assistant

Dental Hygienist

Veterinary or Pharmacy Tech (if counseling patients is involved)

Not Direct Patient Care:

CPR or ACLS instructor

Insurance Clerk

Life Guard

Patient Sitter

Patient Transporter

Pharmaceutical Representative

Researcher with no patient care contact

Shadowing

Ski Patroller

Student Clinical Experience

Unit Clerk

Wilderness Medicine Instructor

Medical Administrative Assistant

Below is a list of local, national, and international opportunities to volunteer in a healthcare setting.

Free Clinics in Virginia: 

https://www.vafreeclinics.org/content.asp?contentid=141

NOVA Free Clinics:

Adams Compassionate Health Care Network, Chantilly: https://achnhealth.org/index.php/achn_volunteers/

Loudon Free Clinic, Leesburg: https://loudounfreeclinic.org/volunteer/

Prince William Area Free Clinic Unified Health Center, Woodbridge: https://www.pwafc.org/get-involved

Arlington Free Clinic, Arlington: https://arlingtonfreeclinic.org/get-involved/volunteer/

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington Mother of Mercy Free Medical Clinic, Manassas: https://volunteer.ccda.net/recruiter/index.php?class=OppSearchResults&recruiterID=501&orgid=1078&type=all

Culmore Clinic, Falls Church: http://www.culmoreclinic.org/volunteer/4593821555

Hospice:

Heartland Hospice: https://www.heartlandhospice.com/find-an-agency/heartland-hospice-services-of-fairfax/?contentIdString=14460&contentNameString=Volunteering

Capital Caring: https://www.capitalcaring.org/get-involved/become-a-volunteer/

Fairfax Area Agency on Aging: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/familyservices/older-adults/volunteer-solutions 

Legacy Hospice: https://legacy-hospice.com/volunteers.php

Hospital volunteering:

Inova: https://www.inova.org/get-involved/volunteer/index.jsp

Walter Reid: https://www.wrnmmc.capmed.mil/PatientVisitors/SitePages/Career/Volunteer.aspx

Children’s National: https://childrensnational.org/choose-childrens/deciding-on-care/support-for-families/volunteer

Walter-Whitman: https://www.whitman-walker.org/volunteer

MedStar Washington: https://www.medstarwashington.org/ways-to-give/

Dental Volunteering –

Mission of Mercy: https://www.vdaf.org/volunteer.html

NOVA Dental Clinic: http://www.novadentalclinic.org/volunteers/

Pre-Vet Volunteering: 

National Zoo: https://nationalzoo.si.edu/support/volunteer 

Fairfax Animal Shelter: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/animalshelter/volunteer

Fairfax County Humane Society: https://hsfc.org/support/volunteer/

Optometry Volunteering:

Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity: http://vosh.org/get-involved/clinics/

The Metropolitan Washington Ear: https://www.washear.org/volunteer.html

Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind: https://www.clb.org/get-involved/volunteer/

National volunteer opportunities:

http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/mrc/

https://www.ramusa.org/

https://www.rainn.org/volunteer

International volunteer opportunities:

http://www.uniteforsight.org/volunteer-abroad

https://www.cfhi.org/pre-medicalpre-health-students

See the Meaningful Direct Patient Care Experiences tab above for a list of healthcare positions. 

Check Handshake or other job sites such as LinkedIn Jobs, Indeed, Monster, or other job search sites for local listings. 

Scribe:

http://vemascribes.com/

https://www.scribeamerica.com/

https://www.scribekick.com/

Medical Scribe Companies

Virtual Scribe Companies

Scribe (PA focus):

https://www.scribeamerica.com/physassist-transition-application/

EMT/EMS:

http://www.fcvfra.org/recruit/training/emt-only/

http://www.northern.vaems.org/index.php/training-certification/training-sources-in-northern-virginia

http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/emergency-medical-services/education-certification/ems-scholarship/

Virtual clinical experiences will never replace in-person experiences, but they can be a useful way to explore healthcare professions. As we get back to normal, it will still be very important for you to gain mostly in-person experiences in order to be a competitive applicant. 

Virtual Shadowing Nano Course in Emergency Medicine:  The Virtual Shadowing course is a series of 5 classes in which your student will watch over the shoulder of one of our physicians, nurse practitioners, or PAs as s/he goes bedside in the ED to assess and diagnose a simulated patient.  The video is followed-up by a series of questions posed to the student and then a summary by the physician.  A short quiz on the topic addressed finalizes each class.  The first of the “e-shadowing” sessions is up and ready for student learning.   The virtual shadowing videos are free and if so desired, after successfully completing all five, students can apply for a Certificate of Completion from the University of Colorado School of Medicine for a $50 fee (covering our costs of producing the videos).  Those interested in viewing the first video series please email Bre McKercher at Breanna.McKercher@cuanschutz.edu for a link.

Wilderness Medicine Speaker Series: https://sites.google.com/view/umwildernessmedicine/home

Medical Virtual Shadowing: https://webshadowers.wixsite.com/website

https://virtualshadowing.com/shadowing-sessions

https://www.prehealthshadowing.com/

https://www.sociallydistancedshadowers.com/

https://www.clinicalshadowing.com/

https://medicalschoolhq.net/eshadowing/

https://contactisprteam.wixsite.com/ispr

OT Shadowing: https://www.umc.edu/shrp/Occupational%20Therapy/Admissions/2021%20OTD%20Applicant%20Virtual%20Observation%20Information.html

https://padlet.com/kirsten_davin/sbswt3wowat9n6r7

https://www.uthscsa.edu/academics/health-professions/programs/Doctor-of-Occupational-Therapy-(OTD)/admissions

PA Shadowing: https://www.instagram.com/ap.the.pac/

PT Shadowing: https://preptgrind.mykajabi.com/virtual-observation-hours

Speech Language Pathology Shadowing: https://www.masterclinician.org/