Gaining clinical experience is an integral part of the journey toward a career in healthcare. Whether through shadowing, volunteering, completing internships, or working in entry-level healthcare roles, these opportunities provide a first-hand look at the ins and outs of patient care, medical environments, and the day-to-day realities of practicing healthcare professionals. And for many medical degree programs — such as medical, physician assistant, nursing, pharmacy, and dental schools — clinical experience is often a requirement for admission.
Beyond strengthening applications, clinical experience helps pre-health students develop essential skills, build confidence, and confirm their passion for the medical field. Continue reading to discover what counts as clinical experience, how to find opportunities, and how to choose the right one.
What Is Clinical Experience & Why Is It Important?
What Counts as Clinical Experience?
Clinical Experience & Pre-Health Disciplines
How to Find Clinical Experience Opportunities
Jumpstart Your Healthcare Career
What Is Clinical Experience & Why Is It Important?
For aspiring healthcare professionals, clinical experience refers to direct, practical exposure to patient care environments. It is often gained through shadowing physicians, volunteering in hospitals or clinics, or working in entry-level healthcare roles.
Clinical experience is invaluable for several reasons. First, it allows students to develop the skills that are essential to a career in healthcare, such as communication, critical thinking, and patient interaction. Additionally, it offers insight into the complexities of the healthcare system, exposing students to real-world challenges and the collaborative nature of medical practice.
Beyond skill development, clinical experience is often a requirement for graduate-level healthcare programs. Medical and nursing schools, physician assistant programs, and other advanced healthcare degrees expect prospective students to have firsthand patient care experience, with most making it an admission requirement.
What Counts as Clinical Experience?
When it comes to gaining clinical experience, not all opportunities are created equal. Clinical experience is generally divided into two categories — direct and indirect. Understanding the difference between the two can help aspiring healthcare professionals choose the appropriate option.
- Direct clinical experience involves actively engaging with patients in a healthcare setting. This includes tasks such as taking vitals, assisting with simple medical procedures, and providing hands-on care under supervision.
- Indirect clinical experience includes exposure to patient care environments without directly providing medical treatment. This experience is intended to teach students about medical decision-making and patient care through observation of healthcare professionals in action.
Students can gain clinical experience through several avenues:
Physician Shadowing
Observing a practicing medical professional during their daily routine gives students the chance to see patient interactions, diagnostic processes, and decision-making happen in real-time. While shadowing is classified as indirect clinical experience, it can provide valuable insight into the profession.
Volunteering
Many healthcare facilities, such as hospitals, clinics, and nursing homes, offer volunteer opportunities that allow students to assist with non-medical tasks, such as delivering supplies and meals, assisting with admissions, and other administrative duties. While some volunteer roles may not be patient-facing, others involve minimal patient interaction.
Internships
Some undergraduate programs and healthcare organizations offer internships that provide structured clinical exposure. These programs may include hands-on learning, research, mentorship, and opportunities to work with healthcare teams in various settings.
Working in the Healthcare Field
Employment in entry-level medical roles, such as certified medical assistant, certified nursing assistant (CNA), patient care technician, phlebotomist, or emergency medical technician (EMT) enables pre-health students to gain direct clinical experience while earning an income. These jobs are particularly valuable because they involve the kind of direct patient contact and hands-on care experience that graduate-level programs look for.
Clinical Experience & Pre-Health Disciplines
Clinical experience plays a pivotal role in the admissions process for many graduate-level healthcare programs, which means that pre-health students should prioritize gaining ample, and quality, experiences.
For each program, the required type and number of clinical hours varies, but in general, candidates with substantial, hands-on experience are more likely to stand out. Here’s how clinical experience impacts admissions for some of the most common disciplines:
Medical School
Clinical experience is one of the most important components of a medical school application. Most programs require prospective students to have accrued anywhere between 150 and 200 hours of clinical experience (though exceeding this range can help an application stand out) to demonstrate a deep understanding of the realities of working as a doctor.
This experience often comes in the form of shadowing physicians, working in patient-facing healthcare roles, or volunteering at a medical facility. It’s also important to note that many medical schools value diverse experiences, such as exposure to different specializations or healthcare environments.
Physician Assistant (PA) School
To get into PA school, applicants need to have extensive practical clinical experience. Given the high level of patient interaction the PA role involves, it’s recommended to gain between 1,000 and 2,000+ direct clinical hours to be seen as a competitive candidate. This experience can come from working in various healthcare roles, including as a medical assistant, EMT, CNA, or by working directly with patients within a hospital, clinic, or urgent care facility.
Nursing
While gaining clinical experience isn’t a requirement for admission to nursing programs, it is an integral part of the curriculum. Nursing students are expected to take part in clinical rotations alongside their coursework and must accrue a certain amount of hours in order to graduate. The exact number will depend on the program, with a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) requiring an average of 600 hours and at least 400 hours for an associate degree in nursing (ADN), for example.
Pharmacy School
For pharmacy school admission, clinical experience doesn’t play as significant of a role as other health degrees. But even though it may not be required, it is still highly valued. Applicants who have experience working in pharmacies, clinics, or hospitals often have an advantage over their peers who don’t — thanks to their firsthand knowledge of the healthcare system and medication management practices.
Dental School
Similar to medical school admissions requirements, dental school applicants should aim to accrue between 100 and 200 hours of clinical experience before applying. Ways that pre-dental students can gain the type of experience needed include by shadowing dentists, working as a dental assistant, or volunteering in dental clinics.
How to Find Clinical Experience Opportunities
If you don’t know where to look, securing clinical experience opportunities can be a challenge. Here are a few suggestions to help you start your search:
- Take advantage of your college or university’s career resources. Many schools have dedicated pre-health advisors who can help connect you with local clinical opportunities. Career centers may also have partnerships with nearby healthcare facilities, can provide access to relevant job listings, and lend guidance on internships and shadowing programs.
- Tap into connections with professors and alumni. Professors — especially those who teach pre-health subject areas — often have connections with hospitals, clinics, or research institutions. Some may have even worked in healthcare themselves and can provide referrals or recommendations for shadowing or volunteer opportunities. Additionally, alumni networks can be a great resource, as former students who have gone on to successful healthcare careers may be willing to offer advice or even help you secure clinical experience.
- Inquire directly at local medical facilities. Hospitals, private practices, and clinics may offer shadowing, volunteering, or internship opportunities. Reaching out directly — whether by email, phone, or visiting in person — can be the best way to learn about openings, as these opportunities aren’t always widely advertised. When contacting these facilities, remember to be professional and prepared to explain your interest in gaining experience.
- Leverage online platforms. Websites like Indeed, LinkedIn, and specialized medical job boards often list entry-level healthcare roles and internship opportunities. Additionally, professional associations — such as the American Association of Physician Assistants (AAPA), or the American Nurses Association (ANA) — offer helpful career resources.
- Pursue certification programs with externship opportunities. Some healthcare certification programs, such as the ones offered by Advanced eClinical Training (ACT), include externship placement. Externships not only provide firsthand exposure to the healthcare field, but can also open doors to paid entry-level positions.
Choosing the Right Clinical Experience
When deciding on a clinical experience opportunity to pursue, it’s always best to be strategic. Here are two key considerations:
- Choose experiences that align with your career goals. For example, if you’re planning to apply to medical school, shadowing a physician or working as a medical scribe may be more beneficial than volunteering at a pharmacy. Or if you’re interested in nursing, a CNA position will provide the right kind of hands-on patient care experience.
- Prioritize long-term opportunities. While one-time shadowing or volunteer experiences are valuable, admissions committees tend to favor candidates who demonstrate long-term commitment to patient care. Ongoing experiences — such as working in a healthcare role for a year or volunteering weekly at a hospital over multiple semesters — show the dedication programs look for.
FAQs
What is clinical experience?
For pre-health students, clinical experience refers to direct, practical exposure to patient care environments, which is often gained by shadowing physicians, volunteering in hospitals or clinics, or working in entry-level healthcare roles.
Why do I need clinical experience?
Clinical experience is how pre-health students develop the practical skills needed for a career in healthcare and get firsthand insight into the medical field. It’s also a common prerequisite for graduate-level degree programs, such as medical school, PA school, and dental school.
What are some ways to get clinical experience?
There are several ways for aspiring healthcare professionals to accrue the clinical hours they need, including by shadowing healthcare providers, volunteering at medical facilities, participating in internship programs, or working in entry-level healthcare roles.
How many hours of clinical experience do I need to get into graduate programs?
The number of hours you’ll need depends on the field you hope to enter and the program you apply to. For example, medical schools typically look for 150–200 hours, physician assistant programs require between 1,000 and 2,000+ hours, and dental schools prioritize applicants with 100–200 hours. That said, it’s always best to confirm hours requirements for each program you’re considering.
Where can I find clinical experience opportunities?
Utilizing your college or university’s career center or dedicated pre-health advising office, leveraging your connections (e.g. with professors and alumni), inquiring directly at medical facilities, making use of online job boards and healthcare-specific career resources, and pursuing certification programs with externship opportunities are all techniques you can use to find the clinical experience opportunities you need.
Jumpstart Your Healthcare Career
Gaining clinical experience is an essential step in preparing for a career in healthcare, and these opportunities provide direct exposure to the field and help you stand out in the competitive medical, PA, dental, and pharmacy school admissions process.
If you’re looking to gain meaningful clinical experience and strengthen your applications, ACT’s pre-health training programs can help. Our courses provide the knowledge, skills, and externship opportunities needed to succeed in healthcare. To get started, browse our programs and enroll today.
