Pre-Med Gap Year Internship 2025-2026

At Northwestern Medicine, every patient interaction makes a difference in cultivating a positive workplace. This patient-first approach is what sets us apart as a leader in the healthcare industry. As an integral part of our team, you’ll have the opportunity to join our quest for better healthcare, no matter where you work within the Northwestern Medicine system. At Northwestern Medicine, we pride ourselves on providing competitive benefits: from tuition reimbursement and loan forgiveness to 401(k) matching and lifecycle benefits, we take care of our employees. Ready to join our quest for better?

           APPLICATION WILL CLOSE FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2025

The Pre-Med Gap Year Intern reflects the mission, vision, and values of NMHC, adheres to the organization’s Code of Ethics and Corporate Compliance Program, and complies with all relevant policies, procedures, guidelines and all other regulatory and accreditation standards.

The Pre-Med Gap Year Intern offers a valuable one-year opportunity for Pre-Med Gap Year students to become immersed in the healthcare environment through clinical support work, research, and educational seminars. This program pairs participants with a clinical department to support a defined clinic role and focus on a clinically oriented research project, while participating in relevant meetings and lectures with the goal of preparation for medical school. This opportunity allows Pre-Med Gap Year students to develop a working knowledge of operations in a complex academic medical center, participate in enrichment activities and create a professional network with students, clinical and administrative staff, leadership, and physicians.

Gap Year internship opportunities extend across the NM system. Once an application has been submitted, candidates can expect a follow up request to indicate their position-specific preferences (location, role, hours, specific job requirements such as travel or attire, etc.) by providing a rank-ordered form. Clinical support roles offered include scribes, clinic assistants, immediate care assistants, patient liaisons, and technicians. Research varies by department, but some examples include quality improvement initiatives, patient enrollment in clinical studies, analytics, data collection, etc. Gap Years provide 32 hours of weekly clinical support and 8 hours of dedicated research time.

Responsibilities:

• Support department by fulfilling an assigned clinical/patient support role (see appendix outlining approved positions)
• Conduct a clinically oriented research project determined by department and overseen by the Program Manager in conjunction with the project sponsor
• Participate in all Pre-Med Gap Year Intern Program mandatory meetings, training and events
• Participate in all clinic orientation activities and meetings to ensure proper training and safe delivery of care. This may include competency testing, skills observation and additional training, if necessary
• Participate in faculty-led lectures
• Support the Pre-Med Internship Process by participating in the selection committee
• Students must participate for one year in duration (unless specified otherwise due to med school acceptance)
• At the conclusion of the internship, the intern will:
  • Present on research findings
  • Participate in a plan to successfully transition work at the direction of clinic and program leadership
• Refer to appendices for specific duties, responsibilities and tasks related to the assigned Pre-Med Gap Year Intern position

Program Start Date – Wednesday, June 25, 2025

Orientation will take place on June 25th, 2025, at the Northwestern Memorial Hospital campus in downtown Chicago. 

Program Time Commitment: 1 year duration

Pay rate: $20/hr.

Required Documentation for Application Submission – uploaded as a PDF: 

1. Resume
2. Unofficial transcripts
3. You must also attach a one-page statement, in a Word Document or PDF format, addressing the following:

• Describe why you have an interest in a career as a physician
• Describe an obstacle you’ve faced when working towards your academic, career, or personal goals and how you’ve worked to overcome it (including lessons you’ve learned through those experiences and how they will help you be successful in your career as a physician)
• Where you currently stand in your gap year (ie studying for the MCAT, applying to med schools, interviewing for med school, etc.)                 

Please note, to be considered for this role, you must submit ALL attachments after you apply.  After you apply, you will receive an automated email to set up an account.  Once your account is set up, you can log back into your application, please navigate to the upload section and press the “+” sign to submit additional attachments. Please contact [email protected] if you have any questions.

Required:

• Recent graduate of a Bachelor’s program.
• Minimum 3.4 GPA (exceptions made on a case-by-case basis).
• Completion of relevant coursework (or efforts toward completion underway).
• Demonstrates intent to apply to medical school.
• CPR BLS certification through the American Heart Association.

Northwestern Medicine is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation or any other protected status.