The final decision about your application to any health professions program will involve a holistic review of what you’ve done and who you are. Your academic preparation and your exploration of the profession via activities will be assessed, of course, but admissions committee members also look for evidence that you are able and willing to uphold the ethical and behavioral standards of their profession.  

All admissions personnel expect transparency from you as you apply, and they also conduct formal checks. Criminal background checks are now nearly universal for people admitted to health professions programs. A letter from your college or university describing your record as a citizen of the campus community, sometimes called a dean’s recommendation letter, including violations of academic integrity, issues in residence halls, and similar incidents (should any have occurred) may also be required. Please come to discuss any problems like this with an advisor before you apply.  

Here on campus, you might want to explore issues relating to integrity, right and wrong, and the fair treatment of others as part of how you learn about the kind of professional you plan to be.

• Academic Integrity: The LSA Honor Council emphasizes a positive understanding of integrity. At its foundation, academic integrity grows naturally from a commitment to treating everyone in the community with “honesty, fairness, respect, and trust.”

• Campus Community

  • Office of the Dean of Students: Programs and Initiatives

  • Many student organizations are devoted to supporting a diverse and vibrant campus community.

Understanding HiPAA

Clinician-patient interactions are protected by privacy laws. Therefore, it is very likely that you will be required to undergo a brief, official training program about the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA) before you are allowed to do any shadowing.  If that’s the case, they will likely require a certificate attesting to the completion of that training prior to you beginning any shadowing.

• A clinical environment such as a hospital, physical therapy clinic, or something similar, will probably have its own HIPAA training module.  Ask an administrator in the clinic about this if you are unsure.

• The University of Michigan Health System HiPAA training module.

  • If you are shadowing or volunteering within the UM system, follow the procedures given to you by your supervisor. 
  • If you are trying to use this for HIPAA certification for something outside of UM, check first to make sure it will be accepted.