Winter break is only a few weeks away. With midterms, holidays, and finals approaching, you may or may not have thought about your winter break plans. If you are thinking about a possible career in healthcare, such as pre-medical, pre-physician assistant, pre-dental, etc, it is important to use your break as a time to de-stress and plan ahead. Additionally, it can be a great time to gain experience towards your future career goals. If you don’t know which branch of healthcare you are interested in, Pre-Health
Advising is a great resource to learn about different career options and ask any questions about which activities can best prepare you for graduate school. However, we will provide you with a few general ways that pre-health students get involved over winter break.
A few ways to spend your break as a Pre-Health student:

• Volunteering: Volunteering is a great way to get involved in your free time no matter which future career you are pursuing. However, volunteering in a clinical or non-clinical setting as a pre-health student is a good way to gain healthcare experience and give back to your community. Many graduate schools are intrigued to see students gaining valuable leadership experience, exposing themselves to different communities and healthcare environments, and serving others through volunteering. Check local hospitals, clinics, or organizations for local volunteer opportunities. The Morgridge Center for Public Service has a list of a few different Volunteer Resources and Opportunities to help find volunteering that interests you.
• Career Shadowing: If you are unsure healthcare is the right field for you, career shadowing can help you determine if a career in medicine is a good fit. When you are shadowing a physician, physician assistant, dentist, etc, it will give you a better understanding of their typical day, patients, and cases they encounter. A good way to start looking for providers to shadow is asking your personal healthcare providers or people your family/friends may have connections with. If you would like more information about the shadowing process, check the AAMC Website that lists answers to common questions about shadowing a doctor as a premedical student.
• Apply to be in a research lab: If you are interested in joining a research lab next semester or are taking Biology 152 that includes a Research Project, winter break is a good time to reach out to different mentors or labs that you are interested in. Pre-Health Advising and Biology Major Advising can provide further assistance with finding a research lab that interests you.
  • For more information about the Biology 152 Research Project and what it entails, check out the Research Project Overview Page to see if you may be interested in mentored experimental research.
  • Check out undergraduate Research Opportunities at UW-Madison.
  • Filter through the Research at a Glance website to view research activities that have been happening at UW-Madison over the past year. This may be a good way to see different topics of research that are available or specific labs to join.
• Think about summer jobs/programs: If you know the specific path you are interested in pursuing, a summer pre-health program or career may be the right fit for you. These programs involve undergraduate research programs, pre-med internships, or applying for a job at a hospital/clinic. Even some medical schools offer undergraduate summer programs. While you may think summer is months away, many of these programs have application deadlines towards the end of winter break. Research certain pre-health opportunities near you to see if they have any programs with winter application deadlines.
  • Summer Undergraduate Research Programs
• Plan out future experiences: If you are not interested in starting any new activities during winter break, you can use this time to plan out future extracurriculars, graduate school requirements, and/or the application process. Applying to graduate programs can be intimidating and it may be helpful to think about when you want to start participating in activities such as research, patient care, shadowing, and preparing your resume to be a good candidate. Take this time to think about when you would like to apply and your timeline to complete extracurriculars.
  • Explore all Health Professions: Explore Healthcare Options
  • PA School Information: Physician Assistant
  • Medical School Information: Medicine
    • Medical School Admission Timeline: Timeline for Application and Admission to Medical School
  • Dental School Information: Dentistry
• Study or prepare for an admissions exam (MCAT, GRE, DAT, etc): If you are planning on applying to certain graduate programs, they may require an admission exam. For example, they may require the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), Graduate Record Examination (GRE), Dental Admission Test (DAT), etc. During your break, research which field you are interested in and find out if they require an examination. If you have already determined your application timeline, plan when you would like to take the exam, research study programs that are available, or begin studying for the exam. There are many free and paid resources available to aid you in your study process.
• Get Certified: Many healthcare graduate programs require undergraduate students to have participated in some form of patient care. Winter break may be a good time to research patient care certification programs such as Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Phlebotomist, and more. Depending on the length of the program, you could finish or begin a certification course during winter break.

We hope that we were able to provide you with a few different ways to spend your winter break as a pre-health student. Please contact us or Pre-Health Advising with any of your questions about the above activities. Additionally, don’t forget to take this time to focus on your own well-being to prepare for the upcoming semester.

This article was posted in pre-health.