PKG IAP: Health

Immerse yourself in the field of public healthcare!

You don’t have to wait until graduation to support healthcare in Boston. Through PKG IAP, our one-month immersion program, you can support local medical efforts by collaborating with practitioners in the field. You’ll provide meaningful public service, implement specific projects, and learn about policy and practice in the United States. This program is open to MIT undergraduates only.

Apply for PKG: IAP Health from September 12th to October 16th.

When you participate in PKG IAP: Health

  • You and our community partners benefit from your passion for learning and service
  • Practitioners benefit from your energy, insights and projects
  • You benefit from the opportunity to develop your project-implementation and client-based skills while learning firsthand about the challenges facing the US healthcare system.

How it works

  • Spend four weeks in January 2024 full-time at Boston Medical Center or Veterans Affairs (VA) Boston Healthcare System through a hybrid work model.
  • PKG IAP: Health will provide you with experience in the field. You will work with professionals, collaborate with fellow students to serve clients, and work on specifically assigned projects based on your skills and the needs of the host organization.
  • This program pairs MIT students (you) with healthcare practitioners and professionals at Boston Medical Center or the VA Boston Healthcare System. Our partners seek students with a wide variety of skills; this experience is open to students across courses at MIT with an interest in the health field broadly.
  • We pay your travel expenses, provide a stipend, and help with the cost of materials.
  • You attend workshops to prepare you to consult with your host and implement your project.
  • During IAP you also participate in community dinners with your cohort of MIT students to share and process your experience in the field.

Looking for Inspiration?

See how other MIT students reflect on their PKG IAP:Health experience:

“Through our weekly dinner reflections at the PKG center, I was in shock to learn how our system makes it even more difficult for low-income families to get the care they need, suggesting that the social determinants of health are just as powerful as the genetic, biological determinants of health… Although I came into this program not knowing exactly what to expect, I now leave with eye-opening experiences and incredible insight into the nuances of navigating an autism diagnosis and the disparity due to social determinants of health. Even since my first day, I felt so welcomed and inspired by The Autism Program staff as they took on us MIT interns as colleagues. Working with The Autism Program this IAP certainly solidified my goals to pursue an MD after graduation from MIT. Enthusiastically attending trainings, literature seminars, team meetings, and pediatric rounds, I immersed myself into the various aspects of the autism diagnosis and pediatrics as a whole, and I would highly recommend this program to any and all of my peers.”  – Charvi Sharma


To learn more about IAP: Health, check our IAP: Health blog content, featuring student reflections on their experiences going through this program!

Talk to us about PKG IAP

Questions? Email: pkgcenter@mit.edu