Third-year biology student Aaliyna Patel spent this past summer inside Jefferson Health’s Abington Hospital, rotating through the emergency trauma center, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, neuroscience, and the Abington Cancer Center as one of just 25 students selected for the health system’s Student Volunteer Pre-Med Program. Patel, of Brandywine, won her spot from a field of more than 100 applicants.
During the spring semester, she began looking for opportunities to gain clinical experience, found the opening on Jefferson Health’s website, and applied. “The application process was competitive, with over 100 applicants and only 25 students selected, so I was grateful for the opportunity,” Patel said.
Jefferson Health says Abington Hospital has offered the Pre-Med Program since 1959, and it remains highly selective: the health system typically offers 20 to 25 seats, spans nine weeks from late May to July, and requires at least one four-hour clinical shift each week, with Monday-evening classroom sessions built around the week ahead.
A summer rotating through trauma, surgery, and the cancer center
Patel’s rotations were designed to expose her to how different specialties function and collaborate. “My main responsibility was to observe physicians and other healthcare professionals, learn about patient care, and better understand how different specialties work together to treat patients,” she said. She also learned from medical professionals about medical decision-making, diagnostic testing, and the different responsibilities physicians carry throughout a patient’s care.
In the operating room, she helped collect surgical specimens sent to pathology. “I had the opportunity to help collect surgical specimens sent to pathology, which helped me better understand how information gathered during surgery contributes to diagnosing and treating patients,” Patel said. “An experience that stood out to me was observing physicians in the emergency trauma center and seeing how they balanced making important medical decisions with communicating with patients in stressful or frightening situations,” she said.
“Observing different specialties, assisting with collecting surgical specimens for pathology, and seeing robotic surgery gave me a better understanding of both the scientific and technical sides of medicine,” Patel said.
How Brandywine’s biology courses connected to the hospital floor
Patel arrived with a foundation from her coursework. “My biology courses at Brandywine have helped me develop a stronger understanding of the human body, disease, and the scientific processes behind medicine,” she said. The internship let her apply that knowledge to real patients and situations, something classroom learning alone could not provide.
Apply to competitive programs even with limited experience
- Competitive programs are worth applying to even if you doubt your experience — Patel applied without certainty and was selected from 100-plus applicants.
What the program actually requires: hours, GPA, and clearances
Jefferson Health’s published criteria spell out who can apply and what acceptance demands. Students must have completed their sophomore year — four semesters of college — by the end of May, be enrolled or on track in a healthcare-related course of study, and show a basic understanding of biological sciences through undergraduate coursework. An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.5 is strongly preferred, though lower GPAs are considered given additional experiences and a strong personal statement. Applicants must also show a mature, independent attitude and professional communication, leadership, and time-management skills.
Once accepted, students must complete immunizations, a drug test, and FBI and child abuse clearances, along with orientation, lecture, graduation, and time-commitment confirmations. Interviews are staged: advancing candidates complete a virtual first-round interview, and those invited to the second round must complete an in-person interview on December 21, 2026, with no makeup dates offered. The program is clinical shadowing only — it does not provide direct or indirect patient care — and students mainly shadow resident physicians, attendings, and medical students, though past participants have networked to shadow physician assistants, nurses, and nurse practitioners.
| Program requirement | Jefferson Health figure |
|---|---|
| Program length | Nine weeks, late May to July |
| Seats available | 20–25 students per year |
| Applicant pool (Patel’s cohort) | More than 100 applicants |
| Minimum clinical hours | One 4-hour shift per week |
| Preferred undergraduate GPA | 3.5 or higher |
| Program history at Abington | Offered since 1959 |
Who should think twice before applying — and what the clearances mean
The program is not open to everyone at every stage. Students who have not finished their sophomore year by the end of May do not qualify, and the health system expects a baseline grasp of biological sciences through coursework. The clearance requirements — immunizations, drug testing, FBI and child abuse checks — mean applicants must be prepared for a vetting process that treats hospital access seriously, and the program explicitly involves no patient care, so students seeking hands-on clinical work rather than observation will not find it here. Scheduling is mostly weekday-based, though Jefferson Health notes the emergency department has historically offered both weekday and weekend availability, and many past participants have balanced the program with summer jobs.
What comes next for future applicants
The application cycle is already moving toward its next milestone: candidates invited to the second round must complete an in-person interview on December 21, 2026. “Put yourself out there and apply for opportunities, even if they seem competitive or you are not sure you have enough experience yet,” she said. “Also, take advantage of every opportunity to ask questions and learn from people around you.”
References
- Jefferson Health — “Academic Programs: Pre-Med Volunteer Program,” Jefferson Abington Hospital
- Jefferson Health — “Volunteer,” program and location information
