Health Professions
Academics (Preparing to Apply to Health Profession Schools)
This resource covers academic considerations as you prepare to apply for health professions schools, including:
Application Planning (Applying to Health Profession Schools)
Learn about components of application preparation including: the Wellesley College Applicant Portfolio, your personal statement, choosing your schools and dual degrees.
Audiology
An audiologist is a healthcare professional that works at identifying, assessing, and managing disorders of hearing, balance and other neural systems in patients of all ages. Part of their work can involve the selection, fit, and dispensation of hearing aids and other listening devices. Furthermore, audiologists can educate patients on the effects of noise on hearing and conduct research that helps to advance the identification, prevention, and management of hearing-related disorders.
Certified Anesthesiologist Assistant
Certified anesthesiologist assistants (CAAs) are highly skilled medical professionals who plan and deliver anesthesia care as essential members of the Anesthesia Care Team (ACT). The ACT builds a patient-centric team that provides each patient with the safest model of care. Within the ACT, CAAs work as physician extenders who deliver a variety of care techniques under the supervision of a physician anesthesiologist.1 A CAA is trained extensively in the delivery and maintenance of quality anesthesia care as well as advanced patient monitoring techniques.
Discounted Test Preparation Resources for the MCAT and DAT
Health Professions Advising is pleased to offer students and alums a discount on common test prep products, including Princeton Review, AAMC Prep Bundle, DAT Bootcamp, & UWorld MCAT Prep.
Entrance Exams (Preparing to Apply to Health Profession Schools)
Preparing for and taking your MCAT, DAT or GRE will be an important part of your application process. Successful students can expect to spend 300-400 hours over a period of 3-4 months preparing. This resource will help you to understand how to approach the exams.
Environmental Studies
There are many career options for environmental studies majors/minors. Career paths will differ depending on whether one wants to focus on law and policy making, on teaching and communication, on more advanced research, or another intersection of environmental studies and another discipline.
Experiential Learning (Preparing to Apply to Health Profession Schools)
This resource is an overview of ways that you can gain:
We will also discuss finding summer opportunities.
Exploring Careers in the Health Professions
Working in a health profession can provide you with an interesting, satisfying, and stimulating career that will allow you to help others.
Genetic Counselor
Genetic Counselors (GCs) are healthcare professionals who work with people that have been diagnosed with an inheritable condition or may be at a higher risk of developing an inheritable condition. GCs are trained in both medical genetics and psychological counseling and work with individuals, their families, and other medical providers. They assess patients’ risk of disease based on their personal and family history, determine the genetic testing that may be appropriate for them, and interpret and communicate the results of that testing
Learn About Careers in Life Sciences
A career in the life sciences can include a broad range of companies, organizations, and foundations concerned with the study of living organisms, including biological sciences, botany, zoology, microbiology, physiology, biochemistry, and a number of related subjects. Employers may include biotechnology & pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, healthcare organizations, foundations, and federal agencies. Most of the information on this page concerns non-patient facing options but there are opportunities to create career paths that merge patient and non-patient settings.
Next Steps: managing acceptances, and what to do if you are not accepted to health profession schools
Health profession schools have varying timelines for notifying applicants about acceptances. Learn about managing applications, as well as what to do if you are not accepted.
Nursing
Nursing is a varied field, which means that there is no typical answer as to what exactly nurses do. Responsibilities could range from making small treatment decisions or providing vaccinations in schools. Nursing is a career that takes both skill and drive, as it is necessary to take an all-encompassing view of a patient’s wellbeing. In the U.S. today, there are over 4 million registered nurses, which means that one in every 100 people is a registered nurse.
Occupational Therapists
Occupational therapists (OTs) are healthcare professionals who treat people with injuries, illnesses, or disabilities to allow them to perform the tasks (also called occupations) that they need or want to do. OTs assess their patients’ needs and desires and work with them to create an individualized treatment plan that will allow them to reach their goals as independently as possible.
Physical Therapy
Physical therapists (PTs) are healthcare professionals who treat people with injuries, illnesses, or disabilities to improve their movement, reduce pain, restore lost function, prevent future injury, reach fitness goals, and generally promote an active lifestyle. PTs are experts on the movement of the human body. They educate patients, recommend exercises for their specific situation, and provide hands-on care such as deep-tissue massages.
Physician Assistant
Physician assistants (PA) are medical professionals who diagnose illness, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and often serve as a patient’s principal healthcare provider. Having thousands of hours of medical training, physician assistants are both versatile and collaborative and they can practice in every state and in every medical setting and specialty, improving healthcare access and quality.
Pre-Med Scholars (First-Year Program)
The Pre-Med Scholars program supports Wellesley's inclusive excellence initiative, preparing students for careers in medicine by offering connections, information and opportunities during the crucial first year of college. The goal of the cohort program is to support students from low-income and first generation backgrounds in successfully preparing for and entering medical careers.
Prospective Wellesley Students Interested in Careers in the Health Professions
Thank you for considering Wellesley College for your undergraduate education. Here you will develop the skills of a liberal arts education, including critical thinking, problem solving, synthesis of information, and effective communication. These skills will serve you well throughout your lifetime, and are highly valued by health professions schools. As you explore your options, here are answers to some of the questions you may be asking:
Resources for Students & Alumnae of Distinct Populations (Preparing to Apply to Health Profession Schools)
A crucial topic in healthcare today is how to eliminate inequities in the quality and availability of medical care for ethnic, racial, social, and economic minorities. There is an urgent need to increase both the diversity and cultural competence of our health care workforce. Learn about resources for underrepresented students and alumnae across distinct populations.
Self-Assessment (Preparing to Apply to Health Profession Schools)
Your first step in the application process is a thoughtful reflection on your readiness to apply. This resource contains the self-assessment planning document, questions to ask yourself as you consider applying, and information about competencies valued in the admissions process.
Speech-Language Pathology
Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are healthcare professionals who diagnose and treat people with speech, language, communication, and swallowing disorders. They work with patients from all stages of life, including newborn babies with nursing difficulties, elementary school children with disabilities, adults with brain damage, and elderly people with dementia.
The Medical Professions Advisory Committee (MPAC) & Letter Process
Whether you require an MPAC committee letter as part of your application or not, this resource will walk you through the process of requesting letters of recommendation.
Waiting to Apply to Health Profession Schools
Trying to balance academics, clinical experiences, community service, research, other extracurricular activities, hobbies, and relationships? Not feeling ready to prepare for your standardized test for admission to health professions schools or to tackle the application process? Not absolutely sure of your career path? Learn more about taking a gap year (or more) before applying to health profession schools.
