Experience is the way you can explore a career field to see what it is really like. And volunteering is a great way to gain that experience!
Volunteering is also required for many health careers and it is highly valued by the admissions committees for all health professional schools. The right kind of experience can help you observe the qualities needed to be a good health care provider and find ways to strengthen your own skill-set, giving you the best possible preparation.
Volunteer Experiences: Required?
Some health professional programs require individualized hands-on experience as part of the preparation for admission and all programs strongly recommend it. Here are two reasons why you should plan for extra-curricular experience:
First, volunteering will help you evaluate your decision to pursue a health career and give you a feel for the workplace environment and the role of health professionals. You will get an idea of the skills and personal qualities needed to be successful in the field and a chance to see how you "measure up". In other words, during or after your volunteer experience, you can ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you really enjoy working in this field?
- What do you have to offer the profession?
- Where might you need additional work and skill development?
Secondly, volunteering offers a chance to demonstrate your maturity and commitment to a future in health care. Evaluations from your supervisors will provide information about your interpersonal skills, ability to communicate, knowledge and compassion for people.
Volunteering: How to get started?
Explore the links to the right for resources on volunteering and how to get started.
Also, look through the Ask a Question page for additional frequently asked questions about volunteering, such as:
- What kind of experience would be best for me?
- Is it necessary for my experience to be directly related to the health sciences?
- Does duration or length of the volunteering experience matter? Should I have a few short-term experiences or one long-term experience?
- How can I find a volunteering position or other kind of experience?
- When is a good time to pursue a volunteering or other experiential opportunity?
- What kinds of experiential opportunities are available to students?
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