Volunteering shows your commitment to helping others and is a key part of preparing for health professions. You should aim to gain experience in both clinical (health-related) and non-clinical (non-health-related) settings. Think hospitals and senior centers, but also food pantries, tutoring, or coaching sports.
While high school service is valuable, admissions committees focus on recent, long-term involvement primarily from college and beyond.
What matters most is quality over quantity.
Focus on a few meaningful experiences rather than trying to do everything. Aim to commit to 1–2 clinical and 2–3 non-clinical activities over time. This depth will not only strengthen your application but also help build strong relationships for future letters of recommendation.
- On campus: Explore URI’s Clubs & Organizations or URI OCEA.
- In the community (only a few examples – follow your interests!):
How to Get Started:
- Hospitals often have large volunteer programs, including Brown University Health and South County Hospital. By volunteering, this helps build your network of people in the hospital that can connect you with next opportunities that are helpful in your pursuit of health professions programs, including shadowing.
- Your volunteer work doesn’t need to be all healthcare related, however. A favorite of ours to suggest is using United Way’s website to find more opportunities.
- Choose causes you care about—whether it’s public health, education, food insecurity, or the aging community.
Not sure where to begin? Start with your interests. Whether it’s coaching, podcasting, or mentoring, many passions can become service. URI is your chance to explore, grow, and find causes you care about. Build consistency in what you do, and stick with it: admissions committees value dedication.
Pre-Health Tip:
As you participate in work, volunteer, or activity experiences, take time to reflect on them as you go. These reflections will be valuable when it’s time to apply to your health professional program. We recommend using tools like Mappd or Handshake to track your experiences and document your insights along the way.