I had my Hospital Volunteer Group Interview today and left a bit intimidated. The interview was in a large group setting and most of the people were way more experienced than i was, some had been to nursing school, others had previous medical experience and most were college graduates none the less. I am going into my sophmore year and need to get the volunteer experience, how will i ever be selected to be a volunteer when I dont have any experience? How can i get experience if I cant even get into a position where I'm offering my precious time for free? This is very frustrating, I will receive a callback from the Hospital next week regaurding their decision. What are my chances and what should my next move be? Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Volunteering at Hospital / INTENSE INTERVIEW PROCESS
- Thread starter DoctorU
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What type of volunteer activity are you trying to get at the hospital? Where I volunteer they have different placements that require a more intensive vetting process to make sure the fit is right. They also have a number of other placements that are much much easier to get. I also wonder if you are trying to get a research vol postion at the hosp. This may explain your "competition." All you really need is to get your foot in somewhere and let them get to know you. Opportunities start to come out of nowhere. If they do not select you, ask for feedback. Ask when you might be able to reapply. Show interest and persistence. Show you can get back up after a punch. At the same time look around at other hospitals (like JFK suggested). There are also other settings in which you could volunteer and get the experience - nursing homes, clinics, suicide hotlines, etc... Call your pre-med or pre-whatever your interest is and ask them for assistance. This is a slower time for them.
Good luck and keep trying.
Good luck and keep trying.
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The volunteering position at my hospital was pretty intense although not as intense as another hospital I wanted to volunteer at (4 page application, include a resume that lists everything you've ever done for the past 10 years, 2 essays and in theory an interview. I was never asked for an interview, I guess they didn't like my essay. 🙁 )
Then I applied to my current hospital, another page or so application, then them contacting my doctor, then a half hour phone interview, then an hour in-person interview. I would say the phone interview was more intense than the in-person one. And yes, many of our volunteers had previous experience. One of the volunteers used to be an ER nurse and many others were in nursing school now. I have a BS and MS. I also didn't get a choice of where I was assigned, nor was even asked. Apparently, they want to give Emergency to people who either have a science background or a lot of experience in a hospital so if you have either of those things, that is where you are going regardless.
Then I applied to my current hospital, another page or so application, then them contacting my doctor, then a half hour phone interview, then an hour in-person interview. I would say the phone interview was more intense than the in-person one. And yes, many of our volunteers had previous experience. One of the volunteers used to be an ER nurse and many others were in nursing school now. I have a BS and MS. I also didn't get a choice of where I was assigned, nor was even asked. Apparently, they want to give Emergency to people who either have a science background or a lot of experience in a hospital so if you have either of those things, that is where you are going regardless.
I also had to interview to volunteer and at my hospital almost everyone is selected provided that the hospital has enough room to welcome more volunteers. If I were you, I would wait to hear from them but also look into other hospitals.
Same for me. I had a very short "interview" with about 5-10 easy questions and just had to read and fill out some papers.
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Where did you interview for volunteering, Harvard? 
When I interviewed at my University Medical Center the only thing I was asked was what days I can work and how long.
When I interviewed at my University Medical Center the only thing I was asked was what days I can work and how long.
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Try smaller, local clinics and hospitals. Those might not get as many applicants, so you might have a better chance at volunteering.
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OP, were you at the CCE interview? I did it last year and I was the only one at my interview that was just beginning my freshman year. Everyone else were like sophomores and juniors and I felt completely out of place and I still got it. Musta wrote some killer essays or something.
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Where did you interview for volunteering, Harvard?
When I interviewed at my University Medical Center the only thing I was asked was what days I can work and how long.
Lol, if I'm correct about OP's volunteering hospital, they made us fill out an application complete with things like gpa, work exp, etc. and also 3 separate essays. THEN came the interview where I heard they cut out alot of applicants. Ridiculous.
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The hospitals here interview people, too. I think it's to see if people actually give a damn about doing the volunteer work. That, and I'm sure they'd like to meet the person first before sending them to deal with patients. Don't worry about it too much. Just... think of it as a pre-medschoolinterview interview
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I'm a coordinator at a hospital volunteering program that is very rigorous in its selection process: 4 page application (including spaces for activities, reference, and 3 essays). Of these applications, about half are selected to interviews. Then comes the 1 hour group interview in which about half of the interviewees are selected.
After years of reading applications and interviewing applicants, I find that it isn't as important whether a person has already done research/other volunteering activities/or has a very impressive resume. What I use to select applicants is that they show effective communication skills in their essays and during their interview. During the interview, I look for applicants that show respect to others as they are speaking (since it is a group interview), respect to me as the interviewer, and who is genuinely interested in volunteering in the hospital and is not just looking for the experience to be a "resume filler." I think that if you show a good personality, a desire to help others, and a genuine reason for applying to the position, you will be able to get the position despite of a lack of experience. After all, these are the only traits that are needed for a good volunteer at a hospital. If you don't get selected the first time around, apply again. I always give a preference to applicants who have applied more than one time, because it shows their dedication.
Lastly, like some of the above posts, I would suggest that if you still cannot obtain this position, look for a smaller hospital or a clinic. I volunteer in a small clinic myself in which the entrance was not competitive at all, but I find my experience in the small clinic to be just as rewarding, if not more rewarding, than my experience at the large, competitive hospital.
After years of reading applications and interviewing applicants, I find that it isn't as important whether a person has already done research/other volunteering activities/or has a very impressive resume. What I use to select applicants is that they show effective communication skills in their essays and during their interview. During the interview, I look for applicants that show respect to others as they are speaking (since it is a group interview), respect to me as the interviewer, and who is genuinely interested in volunteering in the hospital and is not just looking for the experience to be a "resume filler." I think that if you show a good personality, a desire to help others, and a genuine reason for applying to the position, you will be able to get the position despite of a lack of experience. After all, these are the only traits that are needed for a good volunteer at a hospital. If you don't get selected the first time around, apply again. I always give a preference to applicants who have applied more than one time, because it shows their dedication.
Lastly, like some of the above posts, I would suggest that if you still cannot obtain this position, look for a smaller hospital or a clinic. I volunteer in a small clinic myself in which the entrance was not competitive at all, but I find my experience in the small clinic to be just as rewarding, if not more rewarding, than my experience at the large, competitive hospital.
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why does GPA factor in to whether someone will be a good hospital volunteer?
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Wow the hospital I volunteer at just wanted to make sure you haven't had a history of stealing babies or doing drugs..
I volunteered at Brigham and Women's in Boston -- they had pretty intense stages of apps, recs, interviews, etc. You even had to do 45 hours in central transport or at the front desk as a sort of try out before you could get into a department. Gotta love harvard...
PS. I've seen some Brigham volunteers on Boston Med, wheeling the show's patients out. I must have left just before the show started filming...Damn
PS. I've seen some Brigham volunteers on Boston Med, wheeling the show's patients out. I must have left just before the show started filming...Damn
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I had a couple very relaxed interviews for the 2 hospitals I have volunteered at. Tell me about yourself, why did you choose to volunteer here, what is your schedule like, where would you prefer to work, when can you start? I had a 2 page application with basic questions and they had to do the normal things to make sure I was immunized and didn't have a criminal record.
I didn't know that volunteering is apparently competitive.
I didn't know that volunteering is apparently competitive.
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You don't need to work in a hospital to get good clinical experience. The 3 month waiting list for volunteering dissuaded me from applying to hospitals. Also, often you do paperwork or guide patients to the right place, but have little direct contact with them.
If you are in a city, I'd recommend looking for a clinic with interests that align with yours. As an example, there are dozens of understaffed sexual health clinics in major cities. Some cater to everyone, some cater to subsections of society, some are pro life or pro choice, some give medical treatment, some give psych treatment, etc.
Also, there are a lot of mobile medical units which cater to the homeless or underserved. That would be a great experience to get as you'd have direct contact with patients, be doing community service/volunteer work, and probably get a much more fulfilling experience than the typical ER room can offer.
Me, I found my first clinical experience off of craigslist and it was by far the most rewarding and had me interact with patients the entire time. There is hope 🙂
If you are in a city, I'd recommend looking for a clinic with interests that align with yours. As an example, there are dozens of understaffed sexual health clinics in major cities. Some cater to everyone, some cater to subsections of society, some are pro life or pro choice, some give medical treatment, some give psych treatment, etc.
Also, there are a lot of mobile medical units which cater to the homeless or underserved. That would be a great experience to get as you'd have direct contact with patients, be doing community service/volunteer work, and probably get a much more fulfilling experience than the typical ER room can offer.
Me, I found my first clinical experience off of craigslist and it was by far the most rewarding and had me interact with patients the entire time. There is hope 🙂
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Volunteer at a free clinic. Where I live, a couple of the hospitals don't allow college students to volunteer. When I talked to the volunteer office at two hospitals they told me they don't allow college students to volunteer because they can't depend on college students. I just do the free clinic thing because there is no red tape and they really appreciate any time that an individual can donate to volunteer. If people didn't volunteer at these hospitals, they would have to pay people to do this work, I guess that's why they are so picky during the application process.
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I did a CCE program and it had a pretty intense amount of work to get the position. However, I took it more as a method to screen out people who didn't want to do the work to write three essays and a fourth at the interview. Some real burnouts made the cut, and even ones that failed the drug test at the interview got a chance to re-take it
