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CAREER-READY: SHADOWING, CO-OPS, INTERNSHIPS, & JOBS

Brie Penaherrera, Manager of Student Employment

Ashley Hubbard, Manager of Pre-Med & Health Advising

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ABOUT US

Ashley Hubbard, M.A.

Manager, Pre-Med/Health Advising

AH235@mailbox.sc.edu

803-777-5580

Brie Penaherrera, M.E.d.

Manager of Student Employment

gmp920@sc.edu

803-777-1988

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IMPORTANT FACTS

Health Professional Schools don’t require a specific major
Evaluation is instead based on the following:

Grades/Major Courses
Test Scores
Demonstrated Interest In Health Care
Letter of Recommendations
Interviews

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EXPERIENCES: SHADOWING

Start Early: Begin exploring options during your freshman or sophomore year
Check Hours: Check the number of hours that you need of shadowing on your programs of interest websites
Utilize Campus Resources: Pre-health advisors, career centers, and student orgs often have connections
Network Strategically: Ask family, friends, professors, or alumni in healthcare
Contact Local Facilities: Reach out to hospitals, clinics, or private practices with a professional email
Be Professional: Dress appropriately, follow HIPAA guidelines, and show genuine interest
Track Your Hours & Reflections: Document experiences for applications and interviews
Diversify Exposure: Shadow different specialties to gain broader insight into healthcare

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EXPERIENCES: VOLUNTEERING

Choose Meaningful Roles: Hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, community health centers, or crisis lines
Show Long-Term Commitment: Admissions value consistent involvement over time
Explore Diverse Settings: Include both clinical and non-clinical environments (e.g., food banks, shelters)
Build Patient Interaction Skills: Seek roles with direct or indirect patient contact
Demonstrate Compassion & Service: Look for roles that reflect your dedication to helping others
Keep Track of Hours & Experiences: Useful for applications, personal statements, and interviews
Reflect on Impact: Understand how your service aligns with your motivation to pursue healthcare
Look for Leadership Opportunities: Take initiative or help coordinate volunteer efforts

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EXPERIENCES: DIRECT PATIENT CARE EXPERIENCE FOR PRE-MED & PRE-PA

Gain Hands-On Experience: Work directly with patients in real healthcare settings
Common Roles: Medical assistant (MA), EMT, CNA, phlebotomist, physical therapy aide, patient care tech (PCT), Medical Scribe
Essential for Pre-PA Applicants: Many PA programs require 500–2000+ hours of hands-on care (check to see what types of experiences qualify for program of interest)
Valuable for Pre-Med Insight: Helps confirm your interest in medicine and builds clinical skills
Learn Communication & Teamwork: Work alongside healthcare professionals in fast-paced environments
Meet Admission Expectations: Demonstrates readiness for clinical training and patient interaction
Track Hours & Responsibilities: Keep detailed logs for CASPA (PA) or AMCAS (MD/DO) applications

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PRE-MED/HEALTH TIMELINE

Freshman and Sophomore Years:

Make sure you to schedule an advising appointment with our office to discuss your professional school track including required courses and obtaining healthcare experience
Inform your primary academic advisor of your desired career goal to ensure that you are taking the correct courses
Focus on your grades by honing on your time management and study skills
Begin getting healthcare exposure through volunteer opportunities, part-time employment (health care certifications), and shadowing
Get to know your professors, you will need letters of recommendations by the time that you apply

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PRE-MED/HEALTH TIMELINE

Summer Sophomore/Junior Year/Senior Year

Begin reviewing for the required entrance exam (if any) for your desired professional school track (beginning studying summer before junior year at the latest)
Start obtaining letters of recommendations- this will vary by your program of interest (science professors and a healthcare provider are generally required)
Take your entrance exam during the spring semester of your junior year or early summer and apply for your desired programs of interest
Your interviews will be in the fall or spring of your senior year

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GAP YEAR TIMELINE

Will apply between your senior year and gap year depending on when you want to apply and attend professional school
Make your gap year count:
Opportunities to explore:

Fulfill prerequisites and strengthen your GPA by completing additional coursework
Study for and take your entrance exam
Gain clinical and volunteer experience
Study Abroad

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PREPARE TO GAIN EXPERIENCE

Resume Best Practices

Transferable Skills

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RESUME APPEARANCE

Page length 🡪 1 page

Margins 🡪 0.5-1 inch

Font Style 🡪 Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri

Font Size 🡪 10-12 pt. *Only exception is your name (14-18 pt.)

Spacing 🡪 Single-spacing between bullets/content

Double-spacing between sections/headers

Emphasis 🡪 Bold, italics, UPPER CASE, underline

No colors

*** Your format will assist in impressing potential employers!

We’ll start by cleaning up the format and appearance. This, not the content, is what’s going to give the employer the very first impression of your resume. For current undergraduate students, your resume generally shouldn’t exceed 1 page. This might require cutting some sections, condensing, and being as concise as possible. For graduate students, 2-3 pages is fine. For those with experience prior to pursuing their degree: the “rule of thumb” is that you can add 1 page for every 10 years of relevant experience you have. Regardless of the number of pages you’re working with, each page on your resume needs to be a full page, no half- or quarter-pages, please! Margins should be between half an inch and one inch. In Microsoft Word, you can click on the “Layout” tab and choose the “Narrow” margins option to save you some room. Keep the font style clean, professional, and between sizes 10 and 12. Whatever size you choose, everything on the resume should be that size. The only exception to this is your name, which can be between size 14 and 18. This creates visual consistency. Keep to single-spacing for your content, except for double-spaces between section headers. Rather than use color, instead rely on the consistent use of bolding, italics, underlining, and/or using all capital letters. Lastly, please avoid templates. We suggest building your document from scratch. It will look much cleaner, employers will be able to find the information they need faster, and it will be much easier for you to edit and update.

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EXPERIENCE

Start By Asking Yourself…

What experiences in my past support my career goals?
What experiences have I had that are relevant to this position or program?

Label Options

Work Experience
Related Experience
Research Experience
Volunteer Experience
Leadership & Involvement�

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EXPERIENCE

Required Elements

Employer Name
Employer Location (City, State OR School)
Your position title
Dates of employment

Bullet Points

Describe your most essential tasks and biggest accomplishments
Use “formula” : Situation + Task + Action + Scope
Use short, concise sentences (no more than 1-2 lines per bullet point)
2-6 bullets per experience
Describe “soft” (transferable) skills you utilized (i.e. communication, teamwork, customer service)
Qualify and quantify: Use numbers, percentages, dollar amounts
Use past tense unless the experience is still happening �

Once you have your categories created, it’s time to start putting that information on paper. So, every experience on your resume should contain the following components: - The name of the company or organization, - The city and state in which you worked. You can include the country if outside the United States as well. - Your position title, - The dates of your employment. Here, it’s okay to give a start date and an end date. Make sure it’s in the month year to month year format. - Finally, you always want to include strong bullet points. Each should begin with an action verb and describe your contributions to the organization. Having bullet points is your opportunity to make a case for yourself and highlight your skill sets. In them, describe your most essential tasks and your biggest accomplishments. These should be concise, and you should try not to exceed 6 bullet points per experience. In this section, absolutely do focus on your technical skills. However, this is your opportunity to also showcase your soft skills. Be sure to provide enough detail that the employer understands the context of the work you’re doing. Where possible and reasonable, use numbers!

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TYPES OF SECTIONS TO EMPHASIZE TRANSFERABLE SKILLS

Related Experience

Utilize this section to emphasize what you are doing/have done related to your major

Internships, part-time jobs, clubs/organizations, research

Include course descriptions or projects from your major to explain those skills (employers want to know about these – good for interviews)
Ensure this section is your most relevant and recent experiences in reverse chronological order!

Leadership & Involvement

This is a great location to share your LSC student org work
Create a list of transferable skills you feel that you gained from this role, your biggest accomplishments, any leadership role or project you worked on AND problems solved
Another great experience section to pull from in interviews!

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SAMPLE BULLET POINT REWRITES

Bad Bullet Points (Weak)

These are vague and lack result or action.

Helped doctors with tasks
Worked in lab
Took patient vitals
Did volunteer work
Shadowed a physician
Participated in a research study
Answered phones and filed paperwork
Involved in pre-med club

Strong Bullet Points (Improved)

These emphasize action, specificity, impact, and relevance.

Assisted physicians with patient intakes and documentation for over 15 patients daily, improving clinic efficiency by streamlining data entry
Conducted PCR and gel electrophoresis in a biomedical research lab studying cancer biomarkers, contributing to data used in a published study
Measured and recorded patient vitals for 30+ patients per shift with high accuracy, aiding in early detection of abnormalities
Volunteered 100+ hours in a pediatric clinic, providing compassionate support to patients and families and improving patient experience
Shadowed a cardiologist for 60 hours, gaining insights into diagnostic techniques, patient care, and interdepartmental collaboration
Collaborated with a research team to analyze clinical trial data, presenting findings at a university undergraduate symposium
Managed front desk operations, triaged patient calls, and coordinated appointments, ensuring smooth clinic workflow
Served as Vice President of the Pre-Med Club, organizing 10+ guest lectures and mentorship events for 100+ students

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WHAT’S MY SKILL SET?

Fund-raising
Honesty/Integrity
Initiative
Independent
Interpersonal
Leadership
Listening skills
Maturity
Multi-tasking
Organizational
Persuasive
Positive attitude

Analytical
Computer literacy
Conflict resolution
Conscientiousness
Creativity
Critical thinking
Customer service
Dependability
Diversity-oriented
Enthusiastic
Etiquette
Financial Management
Flexibility

Problem solving
Punctuality
Purposeful
Quick learner
Recruiting
Resourcefulness
Responsibility
Sales
Self confidence
Self discipline
Time management
Team player

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UNDERGRAD VS. GRADUATE TIPS:

Undergrad:

1 page resume
Can include courses, projects & academic elements
Clubs, volunteering, clinicals, any work at healthcare establishment is important
Related Experience section VERY helpful
Recent & Relevant experiences
What did you do in undergrad that has given you skills and knowledge needed for postgrad/graduate school

Graduate:

Can turn resume into a CV – similar sections but can go onto second page
Include your clinicals, practicums, any work at the hospital or a healthcare establishment
Related Experience section VERY helpful
Focus on recent and relevant 🡪 what are you doing in your graduate program to give you additional skills and knowledge

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CONTACT THE CAREER CENTER!

As you prepare for all these experiences at any point in your career path never hesitate to ask for help, contact your schools career center or college counselor.
If you have questions do not hesitate to reach out to us and we will our best to pass you along to the correct individuals or send over this presentation!

Kaylee Rogers: Career Coach – Nursing, Social Work, Pharmacy & Public Health

University of South Career Center

Email: gmp920@sc.edu

Ashley Hubbard, M.A.

University of South Carolina Office of Professional and Graduate Advising

Email: AH235@mailbox.sc.edu

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THANKS!

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