Does Hospice Count As Clinical Experience

The best way to get clinical experience depends on what you want to do. It’s an excellent idea to start with opportunities in your community.

Clinical Experience for Medical School: How Many Hours Are Required and Best Options

Medical school is perhaps the most daunting step on the path to becoming a physician. It is a long, rigorous, but ultimately rewarding program designed to prepare you to provide the best care possible to patients.

As a result, medical school admissions departments want to make sure that applicants have a strong grasp of what they are getting into. Having clinical experience shows that an applicant has taken the steps to gain first-hand insight into what working in the healthcare field as a medical doctor is really like.

Having a certain number of clinical hours is a typical expectation from med school programs. Even if not explicitly stated, admissions departments will expect competitive applicants to have been involved with activities that provide meaningful clinical experience. Some ways of gaining clinical hours include paid-work, volunteering, and shadowing.

This guide goes over the amount of hours required for med school and the best options to get clinical experience.

How Many Clinical Hours Are Required for Medical School?

Clinical hours requirements, if any, are very program specific. Be sure to carefully review the admissions requirements for each school you are interested in applying to.

Unlike with physician assistant or nursing programs, the number of clinical hours needed are often not explicitly stated.

For applicants to programs that do not give a specific number, this can really add to their application anxiety. After all, how can you tell whether your experience is enough to be considered a competitive applicant?

For example, the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah lists clinical experience as an “activity requirement”, but does not go into specifics on how many hours are needed.

Based on our research, the average amount of clinical experience recommended by med school advising departments is 100 hours.

When considering med school, you should aim to complete around this amount or more. Others recommend even more clinical hours, with the career center at UCSD saying that “150-300 hours of meaningful patient interactions” is helpful in becoming a competitive applicant.

Despite the lack of specifics, it is often assumed that strong applicants have had extensive clinical experience. A general guideline for clinical hours is that the more meaningful hours, the better. Gaining a lot of clinical experience can help your application stand out and can even help you get into med school with a low GPA.

Taken as just a number, “clinical hours” does not provide much information about an applicant, other than that they were physically present in a healthcare setting for a certain amount of time. In other words, an applicant could have greeted patients or filed paperwork for 200 hours without gaining much clinical insight.

What Counts as Clinical Hours for Med School?

A common question that applicants ask is “does this experience count as clinical hours?” In general, the best way to answer this is by seeing whether the experience involves some aspect of direct patient care.

For example, consider the duties of medical assistants which include both administrative and clinical tasks. Front desk tasks, such as scheduling appointments or answering phone calls, would not be considered clinical experience. In contrast, taking vitals, reviewing patient medical histories, and drawing blood would be considered clinical experience.

Once you find an option you are interested in, you usually do not need to get it approved as clinical hours in advance. When you begin the process of applying to med school, you can report your hours and reflect on your clinical experiences on your application.

Here are some options to gain clinical hours, presented in order from most involved to least involved:

Paid Job

Not every medical school applicant may have the time or means to work. But, compared to the other options, working will usually provide you with the most hands-on clinical experience.

Working either part-time or full-time can provide you with direct experience working with patients in a clinical setting. Because working tends to be a longer-term commitment, the hours will add up. This means you should be able to reach any required number of clinical hours rather quickly. Not to mention, you get paid while learning

However, you should be prepared for more expectations and obligations compared to if you were volunteering or shadowing. Working may not be the best option if you struggle with time management or feel that the added commitment will negatively impact your studies.

There are many entry-level healthcare positions such as medical assistant, medical scribe, or pharmacy technician. The easiest way to find open positions is by checking job search sites like Indeed or Glassdoor.

Volunteering

Volunteering positions are unpaid but allow you to easily gain experience. Compared to paid jobs, they have fewer duties, training, and obligations. Many larger healthcare facilities have a volunteering program that is in charge of training, scheduling, and logistics.

Make sure that your duties as a volunteer involve some aspect of patient care. For example, greeting patients and giving directions around the facility will likely not be accepted as “clinical hours.”

In contrast, pushing patients on wheelchairs or assisting nursing staff may count.

Shadowing

Shadowing means observing a healthcare professional perform their duties. Unlike working or volunteering, shadowing is a passive activity. However, it is an excellent opportunity to gain a stronger understanding of what the healthcare field is like.

To gain clinical experience for med school, you should try to shadow a variety of medical specialties. For example, you could spend a couple hours shadowing internal medicine, pediatrics, and orthopedics. Doing this will help you gain a broader appreciation of the different types of physicians.

It may be harder to accumulate a significant number of hours shadowing. In addition, because shadowing is generally passive, it might work against you if it is your only clinical experience. So, it makes sense to combine it with more hands-on activities such as volunteering or work.

You can find shadowing opportunities by checking in with your university’s pre-health advising department or by contacting local healthcare facilities and physicians in your area.

How Can I Find Clinical Experience Opportunities?

Working is one of the best ways to gain clinical experience. You should also be aware of what kinds of additional requirements or training you need to work in a particular position.

The following entry-level jobs have duties that are considered clinical experience:

• ‍Medical Assistant.Medical assistants help other healthcare professionals by performing clinical tasks like taking blood pressure, recording patient case histories, and giving injections. If you’re interested in working in this role, you could also consider taking an online training program while in school. For example, we have an Online Medical Assistant Training Program here at Stepful that only takes 4 months to complete and offers flexible schedules.‍
• Phlebotomist.Phlebotomists draw blood through venipuncture in order to help other healthcare staff with diagnosis and management of various health conditions.‍
• Licensed Practical Nurse. LPNs work with other nurses and healthcare workers to provide care for patients in settings such as inpatient clinics and retirement homes. ‍
• Certified Nursing Assistant. CNAs work with senior nursing staff to provide care for patients in the hospital. They perform tasks such as assisting patients with basic hygiene and carefully monitoring their condition. ‍
• Emergency Medical Technician. EMTs respond at the scene to health emergencies and stabilize patients so that they can receive further care at the hospital. ‍
• Home Health Aide. Home health aides work in domestic settings to assist patients that are disabled or bedridden. They provide basic care and help with tasks of daily living. ‍
• Hospice Aide. These people assist terminally ill patients with basic comfort and tasks of daily living.‍
• Medical Scribe. Scribes listen closely to physicians during exams and document important health information into electronic health record software.‍
• Pharmacy Technician.Pharmacy technicians assist pharmacists with duties to help make sure patients receive the medication they need in a timely and accurate manner.

How Should I Choose What Type of Clinical Experience to Get for Med School?

When choosing what kind of clinical experience you want for med school, you should ask yourself the following questions: What kind of doctor do I want to be? What do I want to gain from my experience?

Think about what drives you to pursue medicine and use that to help guide what experiences you should look for. If you are interested in a particular specialty, such as endocrinology, for example, then it will be helpful to find a job or volunteering position involving that specialty.

If you are not sure what you want to specialize in, that is fine! Clinical experience will help you focus on what aspects of medicine you are most passionate about. It can also help you rule out specialties that might be a poor fit for you.

Working may be your best option if you are looking for more responsibility, training, and the potential to make some money. In contrast, you may want to volunteer instead if you do not think that you can balance work with your studies.

Shadowing is always a great option as an adjunct to work and volunteering. Unlike with the other two kinds of experience, shadowing lets you closely observe what being a physician is like.

Why Are Clinical Hours Important for Med School?

Med school is an intensive 4-year long program that trains you to become a physician. In addition to those 4 years, you will need to complete 3 or more years of residency. In total, becoming a physician can be a decade-long commitment.

Med school is a significant financial and time investment, for both students and institutions. As a result, admissions committees want to make sure that they admit people who they are confident will complete the program. It works in no one’s best interest to admit students who have not demonstrated in some way that they are capable of succeeding.

It is not uncommon for pre-med students to have a superficial understanding of what being a physician is like. After gaining some insight through clinical hours, they may realize that it is not the best career path for them. It is better to find that out through clinical experience, rather than during med school.

Unlike with undergraduate education, getting good grades in med school does not guarantee success. A good physician must possess qualities that cannot be reflected through grades alone. For example, physicians must be passionate, compassionate, driven, resilient, and have an innate drive to learn.

So then, how can applicants show that they have these qualities and that they have a deeper understanding of what being a physician is like? Through clinical hours and experience.

FAQs About Clinical Experience for Med School?

What counts as clinical experience in med school?

Clinical experience involves direct patient care or contact. For something to count as clinical experience, it must provide you with insight into what being a physician is like.

Does having more than one type of clinical experience help?

It depends. Having different kinds of clinical experiences can help broaden your understanding of the healthcare field. However, depending on the nature of the experience, admissions committees may value longer-term commitment to a single activity over several short stints.

What is the average amount of clinical hours required for med school?

Many advising departments note that the average number of clinical hours needed is around 100. Keep in mind that in many cases, a specific number is not explicitly stated by med school admissions departments. Doing more than the minimum requirement can improve your chances of getting into med school.

Does doing more than the required number of hours help me get in?

Overall, the quality of your clinical hours matters more than trying to get as many hours as possible. Aim to complete a sufficient number of hours that allows you to gain a better understanding of what being a physician is like.

How can I get clinical experience when going to school full-time?

Try to find work or volunteer positions that allow you to come in on weekends or between classes. If you tell them that you are looking to gain clinical experience for med school, they may be more accommodating with your schedule. You can also work during the summer or even take a gap year after graduation.

Does my clinical experience need to include direct patient care?

Generally, it should. Shadowing may count as clinical experience. Ideally most of your experience should come from direct patient care, whether it is through work or volunteering.

How can I find a doctor to shadow?

Check with your school’s pre-health advising department. They may have connections or resources to point you in the right direction. In addition, you can get in touch with local hospitals and private practices to see if they can let you shadow.

Clinical Experience for Medical School: What Exactly Do You Need?

Clinical experience, or clinical exposure, is actively engaging with patients or their care. Medical schools want to see you have the ability to communicate effectively and interact with patients. Read on to learn everything you need to know about clinical experience for med school!

Get The Ultimate Guide on Writing an Unforgettable Personal Statement

Thank you! Look for the downloadable guide just sent to your inbox. Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Why Do You Need Clinical Experience for Medical School?

Gaining clinical experience shows you have the soft skills necessary to succeed as a physician. Showing the initiative to seek meaningful experiences prior to medical school will help you stand out. Beyond a high GPA and MCAT score, medical schools are searching for compassionate students who can easily interact with patients.

Pursuing clinical experiences before medical school shows you’ve tested your motivation to become a doctor, understand the work and responsibilities you’ll eventually have, and have started developing the key skills you’ll need to become an excellent physician.

Medicine is ideally a lifelong commitment. Medical school and residency alone take at least seven years to complete; schools want to make sure you’ve done your due diligence to expose yourself to the field.

Sign up to our Newsletter

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

What Is Considered Clinical Experience for Medical School?

Clinical experience for med school encompasses any medical-related activity you’ve participated in where you’ve interacted with patients and their care. Clinical experience can include (but isn’t limited to) shadowing a physician, volunteering as an EMT, or working as a hospital scribe or pharmacy tech.

Types of Clinical Experience

Unpaid/Volunteer Clinical Experiences

Unpaid experiences include volunteering with a medical organization or shadowing a physician. Obtaining good volunteer experience can help you expand your network and refine your interpersonal skills.

Here are some unpaid/volunteer clinical experiences you can seek to broaden your horizons and strengthen your profile.

1. Shadowing a Physician

Shadowing a physician means you follow them through their day as they work with patients, diagnose illnesses, and prescribe treatments. Physician shadowing is an excellent way to understand a doctor’s daily responsibilities and how to interact with patients.

2. Volunteer EMT

You can give yourself a head start by choosing a volunteer opportunity, such as becoming an EMT. EMT volunteer programs offer training and allow you to take a more hands-on approach to patient care. EMT positions can also be paid, depending on your training.

Some schools, like Emory University, provide EMS services that will train you to become an EMT and respond to emergency situations on campus.

3. Medical Center Volunteer

Medical centers often have many needs for volunteers to fill, such as:

• Admitting new patients
• Greeting and guiding patients/visitors
• Attending to families in waiting rooms who are waiting for loved ones to exit surgeries
• Performing administrative tasks

Some medical centers primarily work with medical students or are affiliated with universities to intake students as volunteers.

4. Hospice Volunteer

Hospice volunteer opportunities allow you to be a source of comfort for patients and their families. Hospice patients are preparing for the end of their lives, and their families are preparing with them.

This will prepare you for the hard moments you will experience as a physician. Hospice volunteers have the opportunity to be hands-on, depending on the hospice program. Certain programs allow volunteers to provide massage or even aromatherapy.

5. Emergency Room Volunteer

Emergency room volunteers provide comfort to potentially panicked or distressed families. Your position will provide them with items of comfort such as blankets and pillows, possibly even toys.

This position can help you prepare for the varied days doctors work every day. You’ll gain experience helping individuals work through a range of emotions, including anger, sorrow, and anxiety. Exposure to a range of emotions while presenting a strong and compassionate front is a skill worth fostering.

Paid Clinical Experiences

Paid clinical experiences help you gain the necessary yield knowledge you need while also earning a wage. Here are examples of clinical experience where you can be paid for your work.

6. Medical Scribe

Medical scribes listen to and record interactions between patients and physicians and transcribe medical histories and diagnostic results.

Morgan Carter, a medical scribe spotlighted by the AAMC, said, “a medical scribe helps physicians provide more effective and efficient care by saving them time by documenting findings from patient exams and assessments.”

7. Emergency Room Technician

Compared to volunteer emergency room technicians, individuals in this role take a more active role in the physical care of patients. They may dress wounds, take samples, and monitor vitals. Emergency room technicians are exposed to a wide range of fast-paced emergency situations, preparing them to think on their feet.

8. CNA/LPN

A Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) helps with daily tasks and supports patients through numerous activities, including:

CNAs typically work under the direct supervision of a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) or a Registered Nurse (RN).

Licensed practical nurses are able to take vitals, collect samples, and administer medicines. They can also work in assorted patient-centric locations expanding options from the hospital while obtaining clinical experience.

Phlebotomist

Phlebotomists can work in hospitals or clinics drawing blood samples. Working as a phlebotomist can expose you to many patients needing blood drawn for various reasons. Working in hospitals and clinics can help you expand your network while gaining valuable patient care exposure.

Pharmacy Technician

Pharmacy technicians work for retail pharmacies or hospitals. While any hands-on experience is beneficial, a hospital setting will familiarize you with the experiences you will have as both a student and resident. No matter where you work, you’ll gather insights into medications used to treat certain illnesses alongside pharmacists.

Remember, the point of clinical experience is to prove you’ve explored medicine enough to know becoming a physician is right for you. The amount and type of clinical exposure you are able to gain varies greatly from opportunity to opportunity.

Any of these options are excellent ways to gain patient care exposure and an understanding of the medical field.

How to Choose Your Clinical Experience for Medical School

Any meaningful experience that exposes you to patients should be sufficient enough to consider it clinical experience. When contemplating which role to choose, you must consider your interests, time commitments, and other responsibilities. Consider how many clinical hours for medical school you can commit to regularly.

If you’re a college student searching for clinical exposure, a part-time opportunity may be best. Try to plan for several months at minimum to show admissions committees your ability to commit to a position long-term. A quality choice is a position you’re enthusiastic about doing!

Even if you’re a non-traditional student, it’s best to consider your options and how you’d balance clinical experience opportunities with a full-time job, classes, and other responsibilities. Full-time positions require more training, but several options will have you gaining clinical experience in less than a year.

When choosing clinical experiences, ensure you consider how much time you can allot weekly, what areas of medicine you’re interested in, and what you’re passionate about. ‍

How to Find Clinical Experiences

Finding clinical experience opportunities can be challenging for pre-med and non-traditional students. Here’s a quick rundown on how to seek shadowing, volunteering, and paid experience!

Shadowing

The easiest way to find shadow opportunities is by starting with who you know and asking. You can try asking your family doctor, science professors, or reaching out to your pre-med advisor to learn whether your school is affiliated with nearby medical centers and hospitals.

Additionally, it can be beneficial to consider what type of physician you want to shadow. For example, if you love working with children, search for pediatricians to shadow.

After you’ve decided, search for that type of physician in your area and begin the cold calling or cold emailing process. Remember, physicians are busy, so you likely won’t be able to stop by and talk to them. Also, securing more than one opportunity is always a good idea!

Volunteering

If you’re wondering how to gain clinical experience, your college is an excellent place to start. Your school may be able to connect you to volunteer opportunities if you connect with your pre-med advisors or the school medical center. If they have their own EMS program, they may provide you with EMT training.

If your school doesn’t have its own EMS program, consider pursuing volunteer positions through your school’s affiliated hospitals or medical centers. If your school isn’t affiliated with many medical centers, you can consider reaching out to local hospitals in your area.

You can often find information about applying to volunteer online with several opportunities listed. Call or email to learn more about each one and get an idea of which option will help you gain hands-on experience.

Some hospitals have a coordinator for volunteers; this is who you would speak with if you’d like to volunteer in this setting. Remember, you want to enjoy the volunteer positions you pick – ensure it’s sustainable for you to dedicate your time to, so you can build a lasting relationship with other volunteers and supervisors.

Paid Experiences

Most paid experience options require training or a certificate (medical scribes are an exception). Some jobs provide on-the-job training, but this isn’t the case for all paid work.

For example, earning a certificate to become a phlebotomist can take as little as three weeks, with the average being eight weeks. The Red Cross sometimes hires phlebotomists and pays for their training (which is helpful, as some courses can cost $1000 or more).

After you get your certifications, you can apply for these paid positions. Ensure you forge meaningful relationships and perform well in whichever role you work toward. Your supervisors may eventually write you letters of recommendation from medical school.

How Many Clinical Hours Do I Need for Med School?

Fortunately (or maybe unfortunately for anxious pre-meds), there’s no set amount of hours you need to spend gaining clinical experience. Most med schools don’t set a concrete requirement.

What’s important is that you’ve committed to an experience long enough to demonstrate dedication. It’s common for students to have 100 hours or more under their belts when applying to medical school.

However, it can certainly work in your favor to have more hours – we recommend pursuing a variety of paid and unpaid clinical experiences to bolster your application.

FAQs

Still have questions about clinical experience? Then check out these FAQs!

1. Does Research Experience Count as Clinical Experience?

It depends on your involvement. If you take patient histories or collect samples, those interactions can be considered clinical experience.

2. How Many Hours of Clinical Experience Do I Need to Apply to Med School?

There’s no magic number of clinical experience hours needed for medical school. However, 100 to 150 hours is considered a good goal for clinical experience hours. Of course, you can always strive for more experience – it wouldn’t hurt.

3. What Is the Best Way to Get Clinical Experience for Med School?

The best way to get clinical experience depends on what you want to do. It’s an excellent idea to start with opportunities in your community.

For example, you can visit your school’s advising center, check listings at local hospitals and medical centers, or cold call physicians to shadow those who work in specialties you’re interested in.

4. What Counts as Clinical Experience?

Clinical experience encompasses any medical-related activity you’ve participated in where you’ve interacted with patients and their care. Clinical experience can include volunteering at a hospital, working as an EMT, and many other roles where you work in a medical setting and interact with patients.

5. Does Shadowing Count as Clinical Experience?

The AAMC states shadowing counts as clinical experience, although other sources have different opinions. Shadowing is less hands-on than clinical experience, but it’s very important to do. As you pursue pre-med experiences, we recommend participating in shadowing and other clinical experiences.

6. Does Scribing Count as Clinical Experience?

Medical scribing absolutely counts as a clinical experience – you’ll work with physicians to record interactions between them and patients.

Final Thoughts

Don’t neglect clinical experience opportunities as you prepare for medical school; your experiences can help show your commitment and passion for medicine. Don’t forget that gaining clinical experience is about patient exposure and striving for quality over quantity.

Do your best to obtain experiences that will give the admissions committee a reason to believe you’re dedicated to the long, rigorous path of medicine. Varied clinical experiences can show your commitment and round out your profile!