Gap Year & Short-Term Opportunity Examples for Health Professions

The gap year (s) refers to a period of time – typically one to three years – that may be used to pursue work, travel, service or volunteering in just about any area of interest, before one starts their health professions education.

Insightful Articles

What to do During Gap Years

4 Reasons to take a Service Year

Capitalize on Gap Years Before Applying

The suggestions below are by no means exhaustive; they are broad buckets of some types of experiences Yale students have engaged in before entering a health professions program. The sky is the limit for what you do depending on your interests or where you may be looking to strengthen your application.  Begin your search by exploring the resources available on the OCS Website.  Be creative and explore!

Research Examples

Post-Graduate Fellowships

Fulbright Grants

NIH Post-Baccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award

THANC Foundation Research Associate

Close Concerns and Analyst Positions

Bench or Clinical Research (here are some examples at Yale University)

  • Aside from the Yale Career Link, look for these positions directly on employer sites

Education Fellowship Examples

Teach for America

Urban Teachers

Yale China Teaching Fellowship

New York Teaching Fellow

Service Fellowship Examples

Alaska Fellows

AmeriCorps

Public Health Americorps

City Year

Peace Corps

Global Health Corps

MedServe

Project Horseshoe Farm

Hospital and Healthcare Leadership Fellowship at Hale County Hospital

Public Health/Health Policy Fellowships

Social Justice/Social Change Fellowships

Religiously Affiliated Fellowships

Other Types of Work Opportunities

Adelade

CDC Public Health Associates Program

Kuchnir Dermatology

DermCare Experts Fellowship

Medical Scribe

Yale Woodbridge Fellow

Medical Assistant

CapYear Medical Assistant Job Postings

Clinical Research Coordinator

Healthcare Consulting

The Office of Career Strategy posts job listings for the convenience of students. The University does not endorse or recommend employers and a posting does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation. The University explicitly makes no representations or guarantees about job listings or the accuracy of the information provided by the employer. The University is not responsible for safety, wages, working conditions, or any other aspect of off-campus employment without limitation. It is the responsibility of students to perform due diligence in researching employers when applying for or accepting private, off-campus employment and to thoroughly research the facts and reputation of each organization to which they are applying. Students should be prudent and use common sense and caution when applying for or accepting any position. All concerns and issues related to job and/or internship opportunities, including those posted within the Yale Career Link, should be addressed promptly via email to the Office of Career Strategy.