Gain Service Experience

Gaining Service/Service-Learning Experience

If you were asked to give three reasons why you are pursuing a career in medicine, healthcare, research etc, one of your answers would likely be “to help people.”  To back up this answer, you should be able to give examples of service experiences that illustrate your desire to help people.  Service experience with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels, or a local nursing home can all demonstrate your compassionate and empathetic side.  Your service experience should be about both giving of your time, and learning from those you are aiding.

What you want to do:

1. Identify a service organization that has meaning to you, and focus your service hours on it. 
   When you have found a service activity that you enjoy, consider talking to the volunteer coordinator about taking on increased responsibilities, such as a special project, training new volunteers, etc.
2. Have meaningful experiences with the people with whom you interact.  You can accomplish this by remaining with an agency for an extended period of time (versus frequently switching agencies.)
3. Journal meaningful events (positive and not-so-positive) so you can recall them later.
4. Keep track of how many hours you have volunteered, as well as the dates you begin and end the experience(s) and make sure your volunteer coordinator/supervisor also tracks.
5. Working with populations that have been less fortunate in life and/or who experienced greater human suffering tend to offer the greatest learning opportunities for students.  Experiences such as taking trips to Appalachia to do home repairs, helping adults prepare for the GED, or being a Big Brother/Big Sister can give you great insight into the challenges many people face.
6. If you find that the agency you are volunteering for is not a great fit for you, let the volunteer coordinator/supervisor know that you will be changing agencies before you start your service with another agency.

What you don’t want to do:
1. Don’t rack up as many different service activities as you can so you have an extensive list on organizations your resume.
2. Don’t assume only health-related experience is relevant. 
3. Don’t fall into a “checklist mentality”.  In other words, don’t do a service experience for one summer, and then quit volunteering for the rest of your undergraduate career.  It appears you only did the service to be able to say you did it.  Strive for continuity.
4. Do not volunteer at an agency where you feel in any way disrespected, useless, or unsafe.

Need ideas for where to do your service? ‘
• Firu Sharp (firuzan.sharp@osumc.edu ) maintains a list of service organizations with which OSU med students have worked.   She’s a great resource and happy to work with BMS students on their service experience.
• Lifecare Alliance: http://www.lifecarealliance.org/12951.cfm
• OSU Community Connections: http://communityconnection.osu.edu/homepage.html
• Churches, temples, and synagogues, etc

Final note: Once you start volunteering, get to know the Volunteer Coordinator/Supervisor.  He or she may be a great character reference for you in the future!
 
Developed by: Lori Martensen, Program Manager
Biomedical Science Major, The Ohio State University