Shadowing

What is Shadowing?

Shadowing is when you follow healthcare professionals in their work settings in order to explore and learn more about a specific healthcare field. It provides an opportunity for you to see first-hand what it means to be a professional in that field and what the day-to-day work of a professional looks like. When you shadow or observe a professional at their place of work you are looking to gain a better understanding of that profession from a “day in the life” experience. An observational experience should provide something beyond what you can find out by watching YouTube videos, TV shows, or by reading random blogs and social media online. These personal experiences allow you to observe, interact, ask appropriate questions and be more directly immersed in a profession.

Why is Shadowing Important?

Shadowing is an experiential method of learning about a profession and is one of the most valuable ways to discern whether or not a profession is the right fit for you. It demonstrates to professional schools that you are entering the profession with a realistic view of what the profession is and an understanding of what it entails. Shadowing provides you with experiences that you can use to answer the question, "How do you know you want to be a professional in this field?"

How Do I Get Involved?

It can take time to find shadowing opportunities, and often it requires a lot of time spent reaching out to different professionals to inquire about shadowing opportunities. Start with your personal network, perhaps with healthcare professionals that you see (your family doctor, your dentist, a physical therapist you've seen in the past). If you've volunteered or worked in a healthcare setting, you may consider asking one of the professionals you have interacted with about shadowing opportunities.

There are several methods you can use to find shadowing experiences. Note that it may take some time to find opportunities, so be patient and know that it's alright if the answer is, "No," or, "Not right now." You can't control how professionals respond to your requests, but you can continually put in effort to pursue opportunities to learn about the profession.

Connecting through Family, Friends, and Others...your own Personal Network

      • Ask parents, friends, cousins, siblings, family members, friends of parents, friends of friends, friends of family, peers, pre-health student org officers, Greek brothers and sisters, and others.
        • Be willing to share your goal of becoming a healthcare professional to lots of folks in many different settings - You never know who someone has in their personal network and that may be how you get connected to someone who can offer an opportunity for shadowing.

Connecting through Organizations and Programs

      • Shadowing professional students: There are often opportunities to interact with or shadow professional students in the various programs right here on campus. 
      • Pre-Health student organizations: Some clubs have set up opportunities specifically for their members. Participate actively in these orgs and sign up for list-servs to be aware of what is available. 
      • Hospitals and Community Clinics: Research hospitals, healthcare systems, and community clinics for structured shadowing programs - and be sure to find out if volunteers are ever offered opportunities for shadowing or observation
      • Be creative:  - Many organizations and programs might provide connections to healthcare professionals that might then lead to a referral for shadowing or observation (non-profit health organizations, clinics for under-served populations, student orgs focused on certain healthcare issues)

Striking Out on Your Own

      • Look up healthcare professionals working in fields you are interested in and contacting their offices to see if they allow pre-health students to shadow.  Be aware, most of the time this will not yield an opportunity, but some of the following strategies might increase your chances:
        • Look to see if the professional went to any of Creighton's schools - identify yourself as a current Creighton pre-health student, interested in their alma mater
        • Offer to send a resume, including any HIPAA training and/or other healthcare experience  
        • Sometimes, rather than ask for shadowing first, you might consider seeing if a very brief "informational interview" is possible. Although informational interviewing is usually conducted in business settings, there is no reason not to request to see a healthcare professional this way.  See the Career Center information on Informational Interviewing.  Links to an external site.
        • If the informational interview is positive, you can let them know you are happy to leave a resume if they might consider you for a shadowing opportunity - Be sure to find out how you should follow-up to set up that opportunity. 

Resources