More than 80 students from the University of Tennessee at Martin visited West Tennessee Healthcare Jackson-Madison County General Hospital on Nov. 5 to shadow employees, gain professional mentorship and speak with health-care professionals at the hospital.
However, many of the students did not have majors in a health-care field. They included majors in business, accounting, finance, marketing, communications, human resources, engineering, information technology, information systems and cybersecurity. The event showed students that their majors – whether they are health-related or not – can lead to careers in the health-care field.
The event was called “Pathways to Healthcare,” and came together through discussions held last summer between the hospital’s administrators and Demetrius Robinson, director, and Luke Love, career coach, both with UT Martin’s Office of Career Planning and Development.
The idea started through talks between UT Martin Chancellor Yancy Freeman Sr.; the late James Ross, the former president and CEO of West Tennessee Healthcare; and Tina Prescott, the current CEO of West Tennessee Healthcare.
“Experiences like this give students the opportunity to connect with professionals working in their fields of interest and gain firsthand insight into what a typical day looks like in different careers,” said Darnesha Currie, coordinator of employer relations in UT Martin’s Office of Career Planning and Development.
“It allows them to see beyond what they learn in the classroom and experience the professional environment up close. These opportunities can help students confirm their career interests, discover new possibilities and better understand the skills and education needed to pursue their goals.”
The experience was not limited to students on UT Martin’s main campus. The event included students from UT Martin’s six regional centers as well as its online students, making this a university-wide opportunity.
Currie said the event will return to the hospital next year, and she hoped that the event will serve as a model for other businesses in other fields to follow suit.
“Our goal is to continue expanding these experiences so that students across all majors have opportunities to explore careers, connect with professionals and gain valuable firsthand industry exposure,” she said.
“(The event) was a reminder of why creating these opportunities for students is so important. Sometimes, seeing something firsthand is what makes everything they have been working toward feel real. Knowing that we helped provide an experience that could influence their future careers made all the planning and hard work worthwhile.”
For more information about UT Martin, visit www.utm.edu or call 731-881-7000.
PHOTO: Chancellor Yancy Freeman Sr. and first lady Rafielle Freeman greet UT Martin students on their way to shadow health-care professionals at the West Tennessee Healthcare Jackson-Madison County General Hospital on Nov. 3. Rafielle Freeman graduated from UT Martin with a degree in nursing.
