REACH Summer Internship

Direct Clinical/Operational Experience:

Interns will rotate through various aspects of a community health setting, as described below:

• Clinical Services: Interns will follow select patients through their clinic visits by shadowing a medical assistant, observing the physical-patient encounter, and by sitting in on behavioral therapy sessions.
• Development/Policy: Interns will work closely with the management team to learn the operations os a community health center, including advocacy-building, policy-making, and fundraising.
• Community Services and Research: Interns will assist with community-based programs that address the multifaceted issues facing the local community. This includes attending the meetings of our Patient Leadership Councils, helping with civic engagement campaigns, observing staff at the Youth Program, and other activities.
• Membership: Interns will learn about health care access in the safety net system by doing outreach to patients to enroll them in health insurance, including Medi-Cal and Covered California.

Special Projects:

Interns will have the opportunity to develop a special project that will benefit AHS and the community at large. By working directly with a mentor, interns will gain enhanced skills in research, as well as in program development, implementation, and improvement.

Community Health Seminars:

To complement the education experience, community leaders will guest lecture on the many facets of community health issues important in today’s political climate, and essential to the delivery of care to the Asian-American underserved.

Question: Do you provide housing?
Answer: No, we do not. However, we do try to provide assistance in locating affordable housing.

Question: I am an international student. Can I still apply?
Answer: International students must have a valid working permit/visa to be considered for this paid internship.  International students with student visas will only be considered as a volunteer.  They may participate in the internship but will not be paid.

Question: Can my letters of recommendations be sent via email?
Answer: Yes, as long as it comes from the email account of the person writing the letter of recommendation. If your recommender prefers to send a physical letter, please include a note of their full name and contact information in your application submission. They may send the letter to Asian Health Services Headquarters at the same address listed for official transcripts.

Question: How much are is the internship stipend?
Answer: The financial compensation varies from year to year, but is approximately $2500-$3000.

Question: What are the work hours during the internship?
Answer: 9am to 5pm Monday through Friday. There may be rare events on weekends or evenings, but attendance is not required.

Question: Can I take courses at same time as internship?
Answer: We expect all interns to be present during the entirety of the 9 weeks and during regular work hours.

Question: Why should I do the REACH internship?
Answer: Our prior REACH interns say it best:

“I love the REACH program! It provided invaluable hands-on learning experiences that really taught me the reality of what it looks like to work with communities of color in a culturally competent way. The preceptors and mentors are always willing to help and answer questions, and made me feel welcome.”

“Interning at AHS has been an invaluable experience in both public health and medicine. I was exposed to a variety of areas relating to how a community health center functions, including shadowing physicians and community programs. I had to opportunity to pursue my own interests, while also discovering new areas of interest!”

“This was really fun opportunity, and I got to learn a lot about community health while exploring Chinatown! This really solidified my decision to go into medicine, and I got a lot of different perspectives on health while working here.”