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Summer Experiences

Summer is a great time to enhance exposure to the health care field by gaining research experience, clinical experience, admissions test prep, etc. We strongly recommend looking at opportunities to enhance your future application, including the below resources. 

Pre-Health Programs

• Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP) - multiple program/location options
• Health Care Careers Enrichment Programs -multiple program/location options
• Campbell University- Healthcare Professionals Readiness & Enrichment Program (H-PREP)
• Florida International University- Doctors of Tomorrow 1 week premedical summer program
• Frontier Nursing University- Courier Internship Program
• Toms River, NJ- Mini Medical School
• University of Alaska Anchorage- Alaska Center for Rural Health (ACRH) Rural Immersion Institute of the North
• University of Colorado- Pre-Med Emergency & Wilderness Medicine Program at the University of Colorado
• University of Michigan- Health Sciences Career Development Academy
• University of South Carolina- APEX Program
• Virginia Commonwealth University- Summer Academic Enrichment Program (SAEP)
• Podiatric Medicine Specific
  • Podiatric Medicine Internship at Temple University
  • Podiatric Medicine Internship at Kent State
• Dental Specific
  • Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP)
  • University of Florida/College of Dentistry: Summer Learning Program
  • Rutgers Summer Dental Program
• Veterinary Specific
  • Adventures in Veterinary Medicine (AVM) at Tufts University
• Pharmacy Specific
  • UIC College of Pharmacy Summer Pharmacy Institute (SPI)

Programs for Minority and Disadvantaged Students

Be sure to review a comprehensive list of opportunities here: Comprehensive Listing of Summer Opportunities

• Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP)
• Des Moines University- Health Professions Advanced Summer Scholars Program
• Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine- Summer Scholars Program
• University of Michigan- Public Health Summer Enrichment Program
• University of Pittsburgh- Summer Premedical Enrichment Program at the School of Medicine (SPAEP)
• University of South Florida- Pre-Health Scholars Program (PSP)
• Dental Specific
  • University of Florida College of Dentistry- Summer Learning Program
  • Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP)
• Optometry Specific
  • Illinois College of Optometry- Focus on Your Future Program
  • The Ohio State University- Improving Diversity in Optometric Careers (I-DOC)
  • University of California, Berkeley- Opto-Camp
• Research Specific
  • Mayo- Summer Research (SURF)
  • The Ohio State University- Medical Scientist Training Program (SUCCESS)
  • Tri-Institution Program (New York City) - Gateways to The Laboratory - specifically for students interested in a combined MD/PhD degree
  • University of Alabama Preparation for Graduate and Medical Education (PARADIGM)
  • University of Connecticut Young Innovative Investigator Program (YIIP)
  • University of Chicago: Pritzker School of Medicine Experience in Research (PSOMER)
  • University of Massachusetts Medical School- Combined Summer Undergraduate Research Opportunity
  • University of Minnesota- Research Programs (Options in Neuroscience, Cancer Research, and Heart/Lung/Blood)
  • University of North Carolina- Biophysical Society's Summer Research Program
  • University of Arkansas- Summer Undergraduate Research Program

Medical Research and Enrichment

• Baylor College of Medicine- Summer Medical and Research Training Program (SMART)
• Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)- Collegiate Leaders in Environmental Health (CLEH) Internship
• Moffitt Cancer Center- Summer Program for the Advancement of Research Knowledge (SPARK)
• Ohio University- Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program (SURF) at the Ohio University
• University of Alabama- Summer in Biomedical Sciences (SIBS) Undergraduate Research Program
• University of Michigan- Health Sciences Undergraduate Research Academy
• University of Michigan SMART Program
• Vanderbilt Summer Science Academy - Undergraduate Clinical Research Internship Program
• Michigan State - Summer Undergraduate Education and Research Program (SUPER) - specifically for students interested in a combined DO/PhD degree

Science Research

• Center for Chemical Evolution Research Internship Program
• Department of Energy Scholars Program
• Georgia Tech- REU: Aquatical Chemical Ecology
• KGI- Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) Program in Biotechnology and Bioengineering
• National Science Foundation- Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)
• University of Rochester- Summer Scholars Program
• University of South Florida- Undergraduate Research
• The University of Texas at El Paso - Smart Mind Summer Mentoring & Research Training: Methods in Neuroscience of Drug- Abuse
• University of North Texas- Summer REU
• Vanderbilt University- Summer Science Academy: Basic Science Programs

International Programs

Note: most international programs have significant costs to participate (unlike most of the opportunities above which are available at little to no cost).

• Atlantis Hospital Internships
• GapMedics
• Global Dental Relief
• Global Health Corps
• I Change Peru
• International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ)
• Somos Hermanos 6-month Immersion Program - for students with a gap year between graduation and a graduate program
• Unite for Sight: Global Health Volunteer Abroad Opportunity
• Volunteering Solutions

Notice for all students participating in clinical experiences abroad: You can face challenges when you travel to other countries if you don’t choose your program wisely and prepare in advance on how to react and behave in situations that may occur while abroad. Please review the following documents regarding appropriate patient care:

• Guidelines for Premedical and Medical Students Providing Patient Care During Clinical Experiences Abroad from the AAMC

Disclaimer: Events, information, and opportunities published by the USF Division of Health Professions Advising are provided for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace either official university documents or the advice of a qualified professional. Unless otherwise identified, off campus experiences are not affiliated with the University of South Florida and all participation is at each student’s sole discretion. Furthermore, the University of South Florida does not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, completeness, and legality of the contents of any linked third party websites.