Student Internships

Our Mission

The Office of Student Internships creates meaningful health experiences for students interested in pursuing healthcare careers. Internship opportunities give students a chance to explore various healthcare disciplines including family medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, dental, pharmacy, and mental health. Internships vary in focus and duration, but all provide engaging and collaborative experiences within MAHEC and support our overall goal to train the next generation of healthcare professionals.

Undergraduate Students

If you are interested in an unpaid shadowing experience or need to complete hours for an undergraduate course, please complete the undergraduate internship request form.

Health Professions Students

If you are a student in a post-baccalaureate health professions program affliated with NC AHEC, our Office of Regional Primary Care Education can provide assistance with securing clinical rotations and short-term housing in Western North Carolina. To learn more and request support, click here.

NOTE: Due to changes implemented as a result of COVID-19, we are currently prioritizing clinical shadowing experiences for students from affiliated schools and programs based on need and availability.  

MAHECxplorer

A general undergraduate internship focused on creating meaningful opportunities for students interested in exploring a variety of disciplines within the healthcare field.  As a part of this six week, 120-hour paid internship, students complete clinical and non-clinical shadowing based on individual interests, participate in a clinical/community project, and attend regular weekly didactics.

Learn more in our program brochure.


UNC Asheville Pre-Healthcare Professions Internship

The University of North Carolina Asheville, and MAHEC's Center for Health Professions Education have collaborated to create an undergraduate internship experience for UNC Asheville students interested in pursuing a health professions degree. Students complete 160 total hours of clinical shadowing, didactics, and project research. This is an eight week paid summer internship with weekly didactics and a community/organizational project.

Learn more in our program brochure.

WNC Heart

The WNC Healthcare Experience and Rural Training (HEART) program is designed for undergraduate students who are rising sophomores, juniors, or seniors from any of Western North Carolina's 16 westernmost counties. Two students are accepted each summer and placed in a rural WNC primary care practice. Students participate in clinical shadowing opportunities and work on a rural medicine project. This is a six week paid summer internship in with weekly didactics and a community project.

WNC HEART interns interact with other student learner groups at MAHEC including the Kenan Primary Care Medical Scholars and other interns.

Learn more in our program brochure.

Davidson Impact Fellows

The Davidson Impact Fellowship provides high-impact employment opportunities for recent Davidson graduates who want to work with nonprofit organizations engaged in critical social issues.  Recent fellows have worked with regional and state leaders to develop opioid education programs that are increasing North Carolina's capacity to treat opioid and substance use disorders and to prevent and reduce associated injuries and overdose deaths.

The program encourages Davidson graduates to help create and implement solutions for the most urgent problems confronting communities, while fostering leadership skills that can promote robust social change. This is a one year paid internship with clinical shadowing opportunities and a community and/or organizational project with MAHEC and community partners.

For more information, please visit Davidson College's website.

MedServe Fellows

This fellowship connects future medical students with innovative, community-oriented primary care practices across North Carolina. MedServe Fellows are recent college graduates who have completed a pre-medical curriculum and are interested in gaining practical real-world experience before they apply to medical school.

Fellows have full-time positions and spend of half their time in clinical roles getting to know the practice and the other half in community-facing roles getting to know the local health system. Their roles are designed to meet their community's healthcare needs. Over the course of two years, fellows transform not only themselves but also their practice and community.  This is a two-year internship in Western North Carolina working at MAHEC across various disciplines. 
 


Department of Psychiatry Internships

The MAHEC Evaluation Team Internship program, embedded in the Center for Psychiatry and Mental Wellness, is designed for students of all levels of education (undergraduate, graduate, or pre-health professional students) who are interested in gaining experience in Psychiatry. Students will have the opportunity to participate in research, program evaluation, clinical support, data entry and analysis, and quality improvement projects. We also offer opportunities to interview and shadow Psychiatrists, Psychiatry Residents, Psychotherapists, and School Based Therapists, making this program ideal for students who are interested in a career in mental health.

The internship is typically the duration of one or more semesters (students must receive course credit to participate). We encourage students to intern with us for two half-days per week, though this is flexible.

Interns will:

  • Experience working in an non-profit health organization
  • Learn about research and evaluation methods in a community and clinical setting
  • Learn to think strategically; collect, utilize, and disseminate data; and work collaboratively with multiple agencies
  • Learn valuable organizational research and evaluation methods
  • Have the opportunity to participate in clinical quality improvement initiatives
  • Experience working on grant-funded projects
  • Discover different clinical and administrative roles in mental health
  • Have the opportunity to conduct surveys independently with patients, learning how to ask difficult questions
  • Participate in Psychiatry Grand Rounds and other educational opportunities
  • Gain a greater understanding of the climate of mental health in Western North Carolina
  • Complete CITI; HIPAA, OSHA, Risk, and Compliance; Value-Neutral and Trauma-Informed; and Cultural Competence Training, among others 
  • Have the opportunity to shadow mental health professionals


Contact

Sydney Nazloo: sydney.nazloo@mahec.net, 828-348-3634
Steve Imig: steve.imig@mahec.net, 828-348-3597