Career club packets / Healthcare
How to run a healthcare careers club
Members learn to talk like a clinician, act like a professional, get CPR certified, and land a first spot in a hospital or clinic.
Built onHOSA–Future Health Professionals, whose competitive-event guidelines are free for anyone, and the free, openly licensed Medical Terminology textbook from WisTech Open.
Part 1
Start the club
A health or science teacher, a room, and people who want to work in a hospital someday.
Start the club
1Get signupsProof people want the club, and when they can meet.
Copy the Doorstop signup form, rename it, and send it to group chats and the classes closest to the field. Every signup is proof people want this, and the form asks when people can meet.
2Ask a teacher to adviseStart with a health science, biology, anatomy, or sports medicine teacher, or the school nurse.
Hi [Mr./Ms./Dr. last name],
I’m starting a healthcare careers club and have [number from the form] students signed up. We’d learn medical terminology, get CPR certified, and find volunteer and internship spots at local hospitals and clinics. Would you be open to being our advisor?
We’d like to meet [times that worked on the form]. I’ll run the meetings and handle signups; we’d mostly need you there and your name on the club form.
With hope and gratitude,
[Your name]
Once they say yes, ask for your school’s form to make the club official. More on this step: How to start a club.
Split the work
Four jobs are enough for a new club. One person can hold two.
Part 2
Fund it
The lessons are free. CPR is the one real cost.
First: find out how your school takes money
- The student activity account
- The PTA, PTO, or booster club
- The district’s education foundation
Who to ask
The front office always knows. Ask the school secretary or office manager who handles club money: usually a bookkeeper or financial secretary. Or ask your advisor; they’ll know who did it for their last club.
Email to askOpen in email
Subject: How can someone donate to our healthcare careers club? Hi [name], I’m [your name], a [grade], and I’m starting a healthcare careers club with [advisor] as our advisor. We’re about to ask [local businesses, families, or a grant] for [what you need], and I want to make sure the money goes to the right place. Could you tell me: - Who a donation should be made out to, and what to write in the memo line? - Whether the club needs its own account in the student activity fund, and how to set one up? - Whether the PTA or booster club can take a donation earmarked for the club? Thank you so much! [Your name]
Or ask a friend
Someone who’s treasurer of student government, or an officer in a club that already raises money, has done this.
Text to a friend
Hey! Quick question: when your club gets money (a donation or a grant), where does it go? Who did you ask about setting that up?
Find grants, sponsors, and local funders for your club
Enter your school and we’ll search for PTAs, foundations, local businesses, and grants near you, write a one-page proposal, and find your state senator’s office.
Budget
1What it costs, and an email to your principalA typical budget, and the email that asks your school to cover it.
| What | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Terminology and professionalism lessons | Free | Open textbook and Department of Labor lessons. |
| Hands-only CPR practice | Free–$725 | Free if a local EMS agency or fire department brings manikins. AHA’s CPR in Schools kit with first aid is $725 and trains 10 to 20 people at once. |
| CPR certification cards | About $75–85 each | An estimate from local Heartsaver CPR AED classes. Ask a training center for a group rate. |
| HOSA dues | $20 a student | Only if your school has a chapter. California’s figure. |
| Scrubs or club shirts | Optional | For a hospital tour or the display event. |
Hi [Mr./Ms./Dr. last name],
I’m starting a healthcare careers club with [number] students signed up and [advisor] as our advisor. CPR is a skill members can use anywhere, and the card is often required for hospital volunteering and health jobs.
To get started we need a CPR certification class for members (a certified instructor and cards), which would cost about [$80 a student]. Is there room in the budget for that, or do you have advice on how we could get it funded?
With hope and gratitude,
[Your name]
- Ask hospitals and ambulance companies for in-kind help before you ask for money: free CPR trainers, a tour, a speaker.
- Ask your local American Heart Association office whether a sponsor can donate a CPR in Schools kit. Some districts have gotten them free that way.
- HOSA’s grant-writing guide is free: Securing Funding for Chapter Activities Using Grants.
Part 3
A semester of meetings
Ten meetings. The four guides in Part 4 have the details for each skill.
| # | Meeting | Use |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kickoff: what jobs exist in a hospital? List 30 together; most people know five. | Guide 4.1 |
| 2 | Medical terminology: prefixes, roots, suffixes. Decode ten real diagnoses. | Guide 4.1 |
| 3 | Terminology relay and a practice quiz. | Guide 4.1 |
| 4 | Professionalism: what a charge nurse notices on a volunteer’s first day. | Guide 4.2 |
| 5 | Guest speaker: a nurse, EMT, or therapist. | Part 5 |
| 6 | Build a healthcare resume. | Guide 4.3 |
| 7 | Hands-only CPR practice. | Guide 4.4 |
| 8 | CPR certification day with an instructor. | Guide 4.4 |
| 9 | Find a volunteer spot or internship: everyone sends one email. | Guide 4.5 |
| 10 | Health Career Display: pairs present a career on a poster board, HOSA-style. | HOSA guidelines |
Part 4
Skill guides
Open one before the meeting that uses it.
Each guide is one or two meetings: what to teach, an activity, and where the full materials are.
Guides
4.1Medical terminologyMost medical words are three parts snapped together. Teach the parts and members can read a chart.
Based on: wtcs.pressbooks.pub/medterm
Use the free Medical Terminology textbook (WisTech Open, CC BY 4.0): one chapter per body system, each with practice activities. HOSA’s Medical Terminology event tests word parts, anatomy, and health careers, so the same study works for both.
| Part | Means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| cardi/o | heart | cardiology: study of the heart |
| gastr/o | stomach | gastritis: inflamed stomach |
| oste/o | bone | osteoporosis: porous bones |
| -itis | inflammation | appendicitis |
| -ectomy | surgical removal | appendectomy |
| -ology | study of | dermatology |
| hyper- | above normal | hypertension: high blood pressure |
| brady- / tachy- | slow / fast | bradycardia, tachycardia |
4.2ProfessionalismWhat makes a volunteer someone staff ask to come back.
Based on: dol.gov/agencies/odep/program-areas/individuals/youth/transition/soft-skills
The Department of Labor’s free Skills to Pay the Bills curriculum (ages 14 to 21, English and Spanish) has ready lessons on communication, attitude, teamwork, problem solving, and professionalism. Pick one lesson per meeting.
- Show up early, every time. Hospitals schedule around volunteers; a no-show leaves a gap.
- Privacy is the law. What you see about a patient stays there: no names, no photos, no posts.
- Ask before you help. Never do something you weren’t trained for, even if it looks easy.
- Introduce yourself to patients by name and role: “Hi, I’m Maya, a volunteer.”
- Write a thank-you after a shadow day or interview, within a day.
4.3A healthcare resumeOne page that shows you’re reliable, trained, and serious about health.
- 01
Top: name, email, phone, city
A plain, professional email address.
- 02
Certifications
CPR/AED (with the date and who issued it), first aid, any HOSA events. Put this near the top; it’s what health programs look for first.
- 03
Experience
Jobs, volunteering, babysitting, and caring for a family member all count. For each, one line on what you did and one on a result: “Helped 40 families a week at a food pantry.”
- 04
Skills
Languages (a big one in healthcare), and specific skills like medical terminology.
- 05
Education
School, expected graduation, GPA if it helps, health or science classes.
4.4CPR certificationPractice for everyone; a certification card for whoever wants one.
- 01
Everyone: hands-only CPR, no card
Anyone can run this, no instructor needed. Borrow manikins from your health teacher, ask a local ambulance company or fire department to bring theirs, or use the AHA CPR in Schools kit ($725 with first aid; trains 10 to 20 at once). The kit gives a certificate of participation, not a certification card.
- 02
Members who want a card: book an instructor
Every American Heart Association or Red Cross card requires an in-person skills check with a certified instructor. Ask an AHA training center or Red Cross instructor to teach Heartsaver CPR AED on campus for the club. That’s the layperson course; BLS is for students in clinical programs that require it.
- 03
Long term: train your own instructor
AHA instructors must be 18, so that’s your advisor or the school nurse. Red Cross instructors can be 16, so a student officer can train as one. You still pay for each card.
4.5Find a volunteer spot or internshipHospital programs fill fast; a direct email to a small clinic often works better.
Based on: fix.school/doorstops/intern
- 01
Apply to the formal programs
Most hospitals take volunteers from 16, often with a minimum GPA, shots, and a set number of hours a year. Many summer teen programs take applications in winter. Make a club spreadsheet of every hospital nearby, its age rule, and its deadline.
- 02
Email the places with no program
Clinics, physical therapy offices, dental offices, vet clinics, and pharmacies rarely advertise, which means less competition. Use the internship guide: find something you’d help with, and say so.
- 03
Or ask for a conversation
Ask someone in a job you want for 30 minutes to talk about how they got there. End by asking whether they know anyone who takes high school students.
Hi [Dr./Ms./Mr. last name],
I’m a [grade] at [school] and I lead our healthcare careers club. I’m hoping to work in [field], and I’d love to learn by helping at [clinic name] [after school / this summer].
I’m CPR certified, I [speak Spanish / have worked front desk / can help with social media], and I could help with [one specific thing, like checking patients in, organizing supplies, or updating your Google listing].
Would you be open to a short call? I’m free [narrow time windows, like Mondays and Tuesdays after 3pm] and [a wide window, like anytime Fridays].
With hope and gratitude,
[Your name]
Part 5
Speakers and mentors
Medical schools and nursing programs do outreach, and health workers like talking about their jobs.
Find speakers near your school
Pick your school, and we’ll search for people working nearby whose jobs fit a healthcare careers club, ten at a time, or for alumni of your school. Each one comes with an invite already written. Your list is saved in this browser.
- Medical school outreach programs. Many run pathway programs and send students to high school classrooms.
- Nursing and allied health programs at the nearest community college: nursing, EMT, respiratory therapy, radiology tech.
- Ambulance companies and fire departments, which often teach CPR for free and can bring a rig.
- Hospital volunteer offices, who can explain exactly what they look for.
- Your own school’s families. Add a line to the signup form: “Does anyone in your family work in this field?” It’s the fastest source there is.
- Alumni. Search LinkedIn for your school’s name plus a job title. People say yes to their old school.
- Local colleges. Professors, program directors, and student clubs at the nearest community college or university often have outreach time to fill.
- People you read about. A news story or a company’s team page is a reason to write: “I read about your work on [thing].”
Hi [name],
I’m a student at [school] in [city], and I run our healthcare careers club. I came across [how you found them: a teacher, an article, their website], and I think our members would love to hear about [what they do in healthcare].
What it would involve:
- One club meeting, about [40] minutes, in person or on video.
- About fifteen minutes on what you do and how you got there, then questions. No slides needed.
- A student will meet you at the front office and introduce you.
Research that followed thousands of students for ten years found that hearing from people with real jobs in high school was linked to higher pay later on. A lot of us have never met anyone who does what you do.
Would you be up for it? We meet [day and time], and any [month] date works.
Thank you,
[Your name]
[Club name], [school]
Make the line about why you picked them specific; that’s what gets a yes. No answer in a week? Send one short follow-up.
Hi [name],
I’m a student at [school] in [city], and I run our healthcare careers club with [advisor], our advisor. I came across [how you found them], and I think you’d be a great mentor for a student who wants to work in healthcare.
What it would involve:
- A video call or meeting with your student about once a month
- Any background check or sign-in rules the school has for volunteers
- Nothing to prepare: just being honest about your work and how you got there
Would you be up for it? Happy to answer any questions.
Thank you,
[Your name]
[Club name], [school]