Students in Ã山ǿ¼é’s College of Health & Wellness are on paths to improve health and well-being — whether that looks like helping someone recover from an injury, reach peak performance or make healthier choices. In Fall 2024, three students were among the Wildcats getting hands-on experiences in their fields through internships. From a typical day’s work to what their supervisors were like to how each brought them one step closer to their future careers, their experiences can help illuminate for other students what a health internship might look like.
Harmony, an Exercise and Sports Science major, learned about an internship opportunity at a local school when one of her professors reached out to her.
“I was one of the few in my class that wanted to pursue athletic training, so when this opportunity came up, he thought it would be the perfect internship for me,” she shares.
Harmony has her eye on a future master’s degree in athletic training and on passing the Board of Certification exam. “I want to work with different sports team, at any level, to gain more experience — but my end goal is to be the athletic trainer for a professional hockey team,” Harmony says.
She experienced a bit of her dream job while interning at , a private Quaker school with a whopping 67 athletics teams playing 17 different sports.
The number of student athletes Harmony interacted with aligned with the teams’ practices and home game schedules, but she had plenty to keep her busy on any given day, from filling teams’ water jugs to prepping students.
“I help pre-wrap athletes and help them get prepared to get taped by the athletic trainer; sometimes I will tape them if it’s something within my limits,” she explained during her internship. “I also help athletes with their rehab exercises and routines when necessary. I help prepare and clean the athletic training room before and after the students come through.”
Shadowing the head athletic trainer at Moses Brown was an important part of the internship, as it provided hands-on opportunities when Harmony could step in and work with athletes. “She’ll walk me through her thought process and teach me as we go when assessing athletes,” Harmony explains. “On game days, I go with her to the field, court, pool, rink — wherever the game is — and help her when necessary.”
“Working with the athletes has been amazing,” Harmony adds. “It’s both a challenge and a reward because they are more serious about their sports and play at a higher level than athletes I have worked with in the past.”
“I learned critical thinking skills that I improved on during my internship — especially during a fast-paced game when an athlete would get injured,” says Harmony. “It’s important to think critically in those situations so you don’t skip steps, but also to ensure the athletes you’re treating are receiving the best care. Attention to detail was also important when treating athletes, both to figure out a diagnosis and when giving them treatment.”
Useful skills she has gained at her internship include learning how to put on tourniquets and when to use them.
Harmony is grateful for her internship supervisor. “She has been in the athletic training field for over 30 years, and she is full of knowledge,” she shares. “She always makes sure I learn at least one new thing every time I am there, and she has given me so many tips and tricks that will set me up for success when I become an athletic trainer.”
“She encourages me to ask questions and even pushes me outside of my comfort zone to learn and try new things,” continues Harmony. “She trusts in me and has taught me so much since I’ve been there. She doesn’t just have me shadow her and watch; she’ll have me do hands-on work. She has made my internship so memorable and always brightens my day when I see her. I love my internship, but she made it ten times better.”
“When I taped my first wrist without the help my athletic trainer,” Harmony shares. “It was a small victory, but to me it was like the first stepping stone in my journey to become an athletic trainer. Everyone has to start somewhere — and now that I know I can successfully tape a wrist without any help, it motivates me to perfect other taping techniques on different injuries.”
Lindsey learned about an internship opportunity through Ã山ǿ¼éthat she couldn’t resist. The Health Science major and Psychology minor has her sights set on going to school for Occupational Therapy after receiving her degree, and an internship opened at , a speech, feeding and pediatric occupational therapy clinic with locations in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
“I had heard of Small Steps Therapy because my teammate did her internship at the Providence location and had great things to say about her experience there,” says Lindsey.
“Interns are expected to perform office tasks around observation hours,” Lindsey explains. “These can include filing, laminating, scanning, organizing clinic spaces, cleaning and shredding. During the shadowing hours, I made sure each room was ready and had the proper equipment in it for the client coming in.”
She adds, “As an intern, I am also able to sit in on sessions and observe and assist licensed occupational therapists during sessions with the clients. It's been an amazing experience being a part of the sessions, as all of the clients were very welcoming and allowed me to stay in and observe. This allowed me to learn and gain so much more information.”
Of her supervisor: “She was extremely knowledgeable and so kind and patient whenever I had questions to ask her,” says Lindsey. “All the women in the office greeted me with open arms and allowed me to shadow their sessions if my supervisor had a cancellation.”
“One skill I learned at Ã山ǿ¼éthat I used during my internship was the knowledge of terminology,” Lindsey explains. “For example, taking Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II helped me understand the medical terminology when the therapist was discussing different body parts. A handful of the psychology classes that I took also played a large role in my internship as I understood the development of children.”
“My proudest moment so far is how much I have come out of my shell,” Lindsey shares. “I feel so much more comfortable interacting with the staff and clients, and I feel confident.”
She adds, “I would say another proud moment is cementing my idea of wanting to become an occupational therapist.”
As a Health Science major, Jordann took on her Fall 2024 internship during her final semester, graduating last month after searching for opportunities that aligned with both her major and her pre-med career path. She credits her career advisor, Melanie Rainone, for helping her land an internship at , a clinic with nine locations across the state that treats orthopedic injuries and diseases.
“Melanie called around and put my name out there and they called back and said yes. This was two days before the semester started, so it was fantastic,” Jordann shares.
“I’m busy!” Jordann reports during her internship. “I’m sort of an aide, and we maintain the area, helping the physical therapists (PTs) with whatever they need help with.” That can mean bringing in patients, applying ice to an injury and even doing exercises with patients.
“Say someone comes in with a knee injury,” Jordann explains. “We’ll massage them out and then start with basic things like riding on a bike, using stretch bands and doing hill slides to get the knee moving. When you have an injury, you don’t want to move it around; it’s our job to get them to move around.”
Jordann appreciates that her supervisor is so approachable: “She’s very understanding when it comes to scheduling around school projects. She also asks for feedback on her supervision.”
She adds, “We typically have meetings every couple weeks to check in, and she’s usually there with us as well doing the same thing. We can always text her if we need help. She’s very communicative.”
Jordann leans on "people skills" such as communication all the time.
“When I first came to Ã山ǿ¼éI was very, very shy, but I learned to put myself out there,” she reveals. “I got involved with Student Engagement and joined a sorority, and I served on the executive board of both and . Once I started coming out of my shell, it’s been easier to communicate with people. When I bring in patients we can chat, and when the conversation flows it makes them comfortable. They enjoy being able to talk for the duration.”
She’s most proud of being able to work with patients on her own. “Typically that’s for people who’ve been there for years, but a PT noticed one of her patients was really comfortable with me and she had a double-book, so she gave me the opportunity to work with them. I got a list of things to do and I was so happy. I’d been waiting for this moment to have one-on-one interaction!”
She also got to accomplish one of her internship goals: meeting one of the orthopedic doctors.
“My goal is to be a doctor of orthopedics,” she explains. “I’m figuring out what exactly I want to do right now, whether to take a break or go straight into medical school.”
Continues Jordann, “I have so many paths and so many opportunities that have been given to me, and I’m working on what I want to do. I’m planning what will be best for me and what will get me to that goal.”