Student Experiences at Northern Westchester Hospital

Welcome to the Student Experiences Program at Northern Westchester Hospital, part of Northwell Health. We offer opportunities for students in high school, on gap year, and in college to gain experience in the world of healthcare through a variety of patient experience and exploration programs.

Jump to:

• Student Volunteer Program
• Healthcare Exploration Programs
  • College
  • High School
• Donation Drives/Other ways to get involved
• Frequently Asked Questions

 

Check out our latest opportunities:

• All student volunteering and shadowing opportunities have closed. 
  • Our next volunteer recruitment cycle will open at the end of August for the school term. Complete our Interest Form below to receive an email alert when the application opens.
• Medical Career Expo: Our next event will take place Saturday, November 21 - save the date! Explore a wide variety of clinical and non-clinical healthcare professions through interactive demonstrations, learn about our student programs, and speak one-on-one with healthcare professionals. Open to students grades 8 through college.
• Support our youth advocacy:
  • Fight nicotine addiction: Click here to learn about the PJLC's Lip Pillow Project, tackling the growing use of nicotine pouches.
  • Champion sleep health: Click here to get a FREE copy of the PJLC's one-of-a-kind superhero novel, Dream Beam Chronicles: Guardians of the Night!

Want to be the first to know when new opportunities open up?

Fill out our Interest Form to receive an email when new student events and programs open up. Please note this form is not an application. 

 

Questions? 

Contact us at NWHVolunteers@northwell.edu or (914) 242-1925.

To explore programs from our broader Northwell network, please visit: https://jobs.northwell.edu/students/

 

Programs We Offer

Student Volunteer Program

• What it is: Students will gain experience in the hospital environment and the practice of person-centered healthcare. 
• What it isn't: This program is NOT an opportunity to shadow clinicians. 
• Who is eligible: Students aged 16 - 22. Students 23 and older can apply to our Adult Volunteer Program.  Timeline: Students are selected seasonally twice per year. Applications open in September for the school year session and April for our summer session.
• Time commitment: Students are expected to give 100 hours of volunteering during the school year and 40 hours during the summer session.
• Activities: Volunteers can participate in any of the following areas:
  • Cancer Center: Offer comfort and non-medical support to our patients in the Infusion Center, and assist nursing team with light tasks as needed.
  • Companion Program: Offer comfort and non-medical support to our patients.
  • Emergency Room Ambassador: Provide support to our patients and families in the Emergency Department
  • Integrative Medicine for Staff: Open to those certified in Reiki, Meditation, or Yoga
  • Pastoral Care: Provide spiritual support to our patients as part of our commitment to healing body, mind and spirit
  • Pet therapy: Provide an enjoyable distraction to patients with healing animal-human interaction (must have a registered therapy dog)
• Administrative Support: Provide assistance with administrative tasks to various departments
• Art Cart: Help patients choose artwork that makes their hospital room feel more like home
• Book Cart: Bring comforting distractions to our patients with a fun cart of games, puzzles, books and magazines
• Food and Nutrition: Support our culinary team in the kitchen and food service areas
• Gift Shop: Help families and caregivers going through stressful times find respite in our boutique-style gift shop
• Medical Stocking: Support our clinical teams by replenishing and organizing supplies and discarding expired materials 
• Mother-Baby: Check in on new moms and offer to replenish their water and blankets, assist with discharge packets and safe sleep packages
• Tea Cart: Provide nourishing treats to our hardworking team
• Musical Performances: Play music for patients in their rooms or our main lobby (NOTE: Drums are not permitted)
• Wayfinding Support: Help escort patients to their destination at our main campus or at our outpatient practice at Chappaqua Crossing
• Age-restricted activities (must be 18+):

 

Healthcare Exploration Programs

College and Gap Year Programs

We offer several healthcare exploration programs for undergraduate students. Applications open in January unless otherwise specified. 

• Community Health Experience Program - Students interested in public health can work with our Community Health team. (Session: Summer only). Schedules will vary with daytime, weekday, weekend, and early evening events depending on community needs. Full time or part time availability.
• Pre-Physical Therapy/Occupational Therapy/Speech Language Pathology Experience Program - Students interested in PT, OT, and SLP can observe clinicians in our outpatient practice at Chappaqua Crossing. (Session: Summer only) 
• Research Programs - Students have the select opportunity to participate in clinical research studies through Northwell's Visiting Scholar Program at Northern Westchester Hospital. Spots are limited; availability depends on current research studies. Please note, participation requires a 1-year minimum commitment as onboarding and training takes 2 months. Info: Contact Asha Mellor, Senior Director of Clinical Research at clinicaltrialsnorthernwestchester@northwell.edu.
• Affiliations - We are proud to partner with local colleges to offer undergraduate field placement hours for pre-graduate clinical and non-clinical programs. (Sessions: Fall, Spring, Summer semesters - inquire about application specifics). 

High School Programs

We offer a series of healthcare exploration program for high school students either throughout the school year, spring or summer.

• • Senior Experience – Seniors at eligible high schools can complete their end-of-year internship with us. This program is designed for students who are interested in exploring careers in healthcare. Students will observe clinicians, learn about and practice person-centered care, and give back to their community hospital. We currently only accept students who attend one of our partnering school districts that has an educational affiliation agreement with Northwell (Byram Hills, Chappaqua, Pleasantville, John Jay-Katonah Lewisboro, Bedford Central, Somers, North Salem). For more information, please contact your school administrators.
  • President’s Junior Leadership Council (PJLC) PJLC is a selective high school student leadership opportunity for students interested in public health, exploring careers in healthcare, and who are committed to supporting the health and wellbeing of their peers. We recruit students annually in January for a September start date. We currently only accept students who attend one of our partnering school districts (Byram Hills, Chappaqua, Pleasantville, John Jay-Katonah Lewisboro, Bedford Central, Somers, North Salem, and Yorktown). For more information, click here or email PJLC@northwell.edu. The application opens and closes in January, annually.
    • Past projects have included a public service announcement about the dangers of vaping, social media campaigns about mental health, posters on topics such as nutrition, healthy relationships, and anxiety, and a children's book about the importance of sleep.
    • Media Coverage:
      • Students help promote mental health at Northern Westchester Hospital
      • From shadowing to leading: two friends find mentorship and growth at NWH
      • Bedtime Stories and Big Dreams: Students Support Youth Mental Health
  • Affiliations - We are proud to partner and offer placement for students affiliated with the following high school programs: BOCES New Visions and the WISE program at Yorktown High School. For more information, please contact your school administrators.

Learn about student internship opportunities in other Northwell Health locations.

Explore healthcare careers at Northwell Health.

Learn about the NWH Residency Program.

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Donation Drives

In-Kind Donation Drives:

Hosting an in-kind donation drive is an impactful way to bring care and comfort to our patients. Choose from our Wish List for approved items we commonly need and email us at NWHVolunteers@northwell.edu to coordinate a drop-off. Please note that we cannot commit to accepting items not on this list. 

All students will receive a certificate of community service hours for hosting a donation drive upon request.

Create a personal fundraising campaign:

Looking to organize a meaningful fundraiser to support your community and obtain community service hours? Learn more by reading our Fundraising Toolkit. 

Make a donation or set up your own personal fundraising page for Northern Westchester Hospital.

 

FAQs about the Student Volunteer and Healthcare Exploration programs

(For specific information regarding the President’s Junior Leadership Council – PJLC – program, review the PJLC brochure).

• Can I arrange my own shadowing/observation experience with a member of your team? No, at this time, Northern Westchester Hospital does not provide individualized shadowing experiences. If you would like to shadow a team member, you must be accepted into one of our healthcare exploration programs that allows for shadowing and meet our eligibility requirements.
• What is required to participate in one of your programs? Students must fill out a program application to the program they wish to participate in. Students are selectively chosen to participate in our programs through an interview process. If chosen to participate in a program, all students are required to adhere to Northwell Health’s clearance standards for volunteers, which includes confidentiality documents, photo consent forms, documentation of full vaccination records, a flu vaccination by December 1 or a signed declination form/agreement to wear a mask at all times, a 2 step PPD test or blood assay (screening test for Tuberculosis). Any student who does not meet these requirements and/or will not consent to medical clearance cannot be accepted into a program. Students also must agree to adhere to our code of conduct, commitment requirements, and dress codes.
• How old do I have to be to participate? You must be at least 16 years old to volunteer or participate in our career exploration programs (The PJLC program and Volunteering as a Musician/Singer is 14+). You must be 18+ to volunteer with your therapy dog, unless accompanied by a guardian. Healthcare exploration programs also have specific age requirements - please refer to each program for guidelines.
• How many hours am I required to commit as part of the General Volunteer Program? We ask students to commit a minimum of 40 hours for the summer session or 100 hours for the school year.
• When can I volunteer? In our General Volunteer Program, we offer flexible shifts for daytime, after-school, evening, weekend, and school-break hours to fit your schedule. Students sign up for shifts using Sign-Up Genius.
• How can I get started? We select students to participate in our programs through an application and interview process. Exploration programs occur at select scheduled times per year and we do not arrange individualized shadowing experiences for any student. We recruit students for volunteer experience programs seasonally for a fall, spring or summer program; our exploration programs occur at select times of the year. Students who apply and are not accepted have the option to reapply as long they meet the eligibility criteria.
• What training is required to volunteer? All volunteers are required to go through orientation prior to participating. Our patient experience programs require a 30 minute to 1 hour training prior to signing up for shifts. Certain volunteer programs require additional training. Healthcare exploration programs have program specific orientation.
• Do you provide housing or transportation? No we do not. Students are responsible for their own housing and transportation.