How I got Shadowing Experience

If you are a pre-health student, chances are your professional school will require you to have a certain number of shadowing hours prior to application. Shadowing is a wonderful way to get first-hand experience on the field you are interested in. You will be able to witness different patient cases and how the person you're shadowing manages every situation. By the end of the day, you will have a better idea of the field and may continue to pursue it or change your mind and follow a different path.

Over the past few months, I have had the amazing opportunity to be welcomed by genetic counselors and a doctor to shadow them. Before all of that though, it was hard to get in contact with anyone. I want to pursue genetic counseling; however, I do not have any family friends that are genetic counselors. Because I do not have a network with genetic counselors, I had to grow a pair (excuse my French) and do cold communication.

I went to the National Society of Genetic Counselors website and collected a list of genetic counselors that welcomed student shadows. By the way, they should update that list. I cannot tell you how embarrassed I was to contact the wrong person because the website had old numbers. ANYWAYS, I went down the list first calling those that specialized in cancer genetics and left voicemails, but no one answered. I decided that now was not the time to be picky, so I called other specialties- cardiology, hematology, pediatrics, etc. Again, I left voicemails but no one got back to me.

Since cold calling was a bust, I sent out cold emails. I went online and googled "how to send a cold email for shadowing experience" before I made my template:

Subject: Pre-Genetic Counseling Student Interested in Shadowing

Message Body:

Good morning ________________,

My name is Danish Felipe. I am an undergraduate biology student at the University of Houston.

I am interested in becoming a genetic counselor and would like to gain experience to help me expand my knowledge on the field. I was wondering if you would be able to welcome me to shadow you.

Thank you for your time, and I look forward to hearing back from you!

Cheers,

Danish Felipe

I went back to the list to collect their emails and filled out their name in the blank before sending the email out. Also, I should add that I sent my emails at exactly 9:15 am because I knew they'd be in the clinic by then checking their emails and I wanted to make ABSOLUTELY SURE that mine was at the top of their inbox. Annoying, I know... but it was effective. I probably sent out 12 emails, and got 7 responses. All of them were polite rejections, however one of them forwarded my email to the person in charge of arranging student shadows in her department. Once I got in contact with the genetic counselor in charge, everything became smooth sailing. I shadowed 2 different genetic counselors specialized in pre-natal genetics. From shadowing, I was certain in my determination of pursuing it.

Apart from genetic counseling, I was also given the opportunity to shadow a doctor specialized in internal medicine. I communicated with her through my dad, because he is her patient. Fortunately, I a shadowing experience became me being a student assistant every weekday until the end of summer. Although I am not working towards medical school, it is still a great opportunity for me to be exposed to a clinical setting. Volunteering there allows me to not only witness the doctor's role, but also have hands on experience with patients. My doctor is an incredible mentor. I have learned so much from her on how to build a genuine relationship with every patient.

In addition to the clinic, I volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House every other week. This organization allows families with a child in critical condition to have a rest place in the medical center. It is an organization that I am passionate about, because it allows me to witness how an unfortunate diagnosis impacts families outside of a clinical setting. Helping there reminds me of my family’s time in the hospital during my mom’s stay. Although the Ronald McDonald House is only for families with children in care, my family and I received a lot of help from hospital staff and friends. I value organizations like the Ronald McDonald House, because it provides families with temporary comfort to face larger challenges.

I do know that not many people understand why I elect to do these things. There have been family and friends outside the medical field that don’t understand the value of shadowing and volunteering. They’re not impressed by it unless it is a paid internship. They often say that because I’m about to finish undergraduate school that I should be looking for a “big girl job to make big girl money”. I’m sure others may have said the same to you, but I say screw them. You’re building your future for the long run by chasing opportunities like this, instead of settling for short-term satisfaction like they are suggesting. Shadow and volunteer as often as you can. Expose yourself to many scenarios. Not everyone has the level of compassion, patience, and intelligence needed to be successful in the medical field. Keep pursuing what you are passionate about and you will meet your goal.

Cheers,

Danish