Compare this in-person medical work experience option, then confirm observation activities and hospital access.
Medicine
25 Jul – 07 Aug 2027
From £3140
14-18
In-person
Best for
Comparing overseas work experience
Medical Shadowing, Simulation or Research: What Is the Difference?
Medical shadowing means observing healthcare work; simulation means practicing staged scenarios; research means investigating scientific questions.
Programs
MedicineChoose between optionsLast verified: 9 Oct 2026Reviewed by:SSSean Stevens
- Shadowing helps you understand healthcare work by observing a professional within the host's access rules.
- Simulation lets you participate in staged cases and skills practice, without establishing permission to treat patients.
- Research develops scientific inquiry through an approved project, with tasks and outputs determined by the program.
- Under-18 access depends on the institution, department and activity; a program's age range does not guarantee hospital access.
- Choose by your learning goal, permitted activities and supervision arrangements, rather than the program's title.
What Succeed checks
We review public sources, provider information and recognised education-sector guidance, then focus on what helps students make practical decisions.
How official sources are used
We use official sources where available, especially for deadlines, eligibility, costs, availability and application details.
What Last verified means
Last verified is the latest date Succeed checked the key public information used in this guide. Details can still change after that date.
Why details can change
Opportunity details can change between review cycles. Always check the official source before applying or making a final decision.
Succeed's guidance is editorially independent. Providers do not approve or control the advice in our guides. If a provider relationship affects a page, we state it clearly.
What students do in shadowing, simulation and research
Shadowing, also called observation or an observership, means following a healthcare professional to understand their work. In the UK, work experience is a broader term that can include clinical observation or non-clinical support roles, with activities determined by the host. Johns Hopkins Medicine, for example, requires direct supervision and prohibits observers from physically contacting patients or accessing electronic medical records.
Simulation means participating in a planned learning scenario rather than observing routine clinical care. Stanford Medicine explains that standardized patients are trained actors who follow written cases and provide feedback. The Stanford Clinical Summer Internship curriculum includes standardized-patient interviews, trauma scenarios and a final clinical simulation, although its sample curriculum can change. Students must attend and participate actively; its staff supervise during program hours, with no after-hours supervision.
Research focuses on investigating a scientific question rather than rehearsing a clinical encounter. At Stanford SIMR, students undertake medically oriented basic research, complete mandatory safety training and prepare a research poster, with graduate students or postdoctoral fellows providing day-to-day mentoring. That example involves approximately 40 hours each week, but other research formats require separate confirmation of methods, workload and outputs. Succeed recommends matching the format to what you want to learn, then using How to Choose a Medicine Summer Program to assess the wider program.
How to choose between medical shadowing, simulation and research
Choose observation for workplace insight, simulation for guided scenario practice, or research for investigating scientific questions.
Common mistake: Avoid assuming one format is automatically better.
Ask how much time students spend observing, practicing simulations, attending classes and contributing to research.
Common mistake: Avoid treating a program title as a timetable.
Obtain the host institution's written age, department, residency and consent requirements for each proposed activity.
Common mistake: Avoid equating program enrollment with clinical access.
Confirm your supervisor, permitted tasks, required training, attendance expectations and support outside teaching hours.
Common mistake: Avoid assuming supervision includes evenings or accommodation.
Compare the workload, total family cost, travel, accommodation and cancellation terms before choosing a program.
Common mistake: Avoid choosing solely for a certificate or admissions claim.
Patients can refuse an observer, and students must follow the host's confidentiality and permitted-task rules throughout the experience. Keep patient information out of personal notes, messages and application reflections, and ask your supervisor before undertaking any unfamiliar task.
Medical shadowing vs simulation vs research
| Dimensions | Shadowing / observation | Simulation | Research |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main activity | Observe a healthcare professional | Participate in staged cases and skills practice | Investigate a question through an approved project |
| Learning goal | Understand working roles, routines and communication | Develop communication, reasoning and teamwork through practice | Understand scientific methods and interpretation |
| Patient access | Host permission and patient consent govern observation | Simulated encounters; clinical access requires separate confirmation | A medical topic does not establish patient access |
| Supervision to confirm | Named sponsor and direct supervision | Teaching staff, feedback and supervision hours | Project mentor, safety training and approved tasks |
| Student responsibilities | Protect confidentiality and follow observation boundaries | Attend, participate and follow practice instructions | Complete training, agreed project tasks and outputs |
| Under-18 limits | Institution, department and consent requirements | Provider age rules and supervision arrangements | Provider eligibility, laboratory access and safeguarding rules |
| Useful reflection | What did you learn about healthcare work? | How did feedback change your approach? | What do your findings support or leave uncertain? |
Medical program options to compare
Use these options as a comparison shortlist, then confirm each program's observation, simulation or research activities directly with its provider.
Save deadline
Compare this online medicine research option, then confirm project methods, mentor contact and expected outputs.
Medicine
Deadline not announced
From £2995
13-18
Online
Best for
Considering online medical research
Compare this in-person pediatrics course, then ask how teaching, observation and any simulation activities are divided.
Medicine
June to July 2027, 2 sessions
From $3298
14-18
In-person
Best for
Exploring a specialty course
Save the options below to compare their ages, costs and locations while you confirm activities and supervision with each provider.
Compare saved medical programsQuestions to ask a medical program provider
Which activities will I observe, simulate or research?
What age restrictions apply to each department and activity?
Are patient encounters confirmed, and how is consent obtained?
Who supervises me, and during which hours?
What confidentiality agreements and safety training must I complete?
Which tasks may I perform, and which are prohibited?
What workload, feedback and final outputs should I expect?
What costs, accommodation arrangements and cancellation terms apply?
How age affects medical exposure choices
| Age / year group | Best focus | Good opportunity types | What to prepare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 16 | Explore interests within age restrictions | Eligible courses, non-clinical experience, introductory projects | Guardian involvement, activity-specific age confirmation |
| 16 | Check institution and department eligibility | Eligible observation, simulation, supervised research | Consent forms, training, required health documentation |
| 17 | Confirm remaining restrictions for minors | Eligible ward observation, simulation, research | Department approval, supervision and accommodation plans |
| 18+ | Check educational and activity requirements | Approved observation, simulation, research | Eligibility confirmation, confidentiality agreements, required training |
Common assumptions about medical summer programs
Reality
A title does not establish permitted tasks or clinical access. Johns Hopkins observers cannot physically contact patients or access electronic medical records.
What to do
Ask for written activity boundaries from the host.
Reality
NHS England explains that individual trusts set their own work experience policies. Minimum ages also depend on the department and activity.
What to do
Confirm the specific trust's rules for your proposed placement.
Reality
Penn State distinguishes brief research shadowing from extended laboratory internships. Watching researchers and contributing to an approved project involve different responsibilities.
What to do
Ask what work you personally complete and how it is supervised.
Reality
A completion certificate recognizes participation under the provider's rules. It does not establish how a university will evaluate that experience.
What to do
Choose for learning value and describe your contribution accurately.
Narrow your medical program shortlist
Use your learning goal and practical constraints to narrow the options before comparing individual programs.
Step 1 of 4
What are you looking for right now?
Selection reviewed by
Sean Stevens
Co-founder, Succeed | Founder, Immerse Education (2012–2026)
Sean works at the intersection of academic enrichment, program quality and university preparation, with expertise in evaluating pre-university experiences for ambitious secondary school students.
Medical shadowing, simulation and research FAQs
Some institutions permit it under specific rules: Johns Hopkins Medicine accepts observers from 16 and requires parental consent below 18. Its Suburban Hospital emergency department and operating rooms require observers to be at least 18, so general eligibility does not establish department access.
Each trust sets its own rules. Mid and South Essex permits non-clinical placements at 15, some clinical placements at 16, wards and surgical shadowing from 17, and high-risk clinical areas from 18. Sherwood Forest Hospitals permits non-clinical placements from 14 and clinical areas from 16, with further restrictions.
A simulated encounter can involve a trained actor portraying a patient from a written case, as Stanford Medicine explains. A program may separately include other encounters, but simulation activities alone do not confirm clinical shadowing or permission to provide patient care.
Sherwood Forest Hospitals requires students to protect patient and hospital information and prohibits sharing confidential information with friends or relatives. Its confidentiality obligation continues after the placement ends. Students must follow the host's rules when taking notes or discussing what they learned.
Penn State requires students to be at least 16, live in the US and secure a faculty supervisor. Activities must be closely supervised, training must precede work, and its safeguarding rules require two adults to be present. Hazardous-material work requires appropriate prior training or exclusion from those activities.
Eligibility differs by program: Stanford CSI accepts international applications, while SIMR requires US citizenship or permanent residency and attendance at a US high school. SIMR also requires junior or senior standing and a minimum age of 16. International eligibility does not establish visa sponsorship, accommodation or clinical access.
Confirm this separately: Stanford CSI supervises students during program hours and provides no after-hours supervision or campus accommodation. SIMR requires participants to live with a family member or legal adult guardian and does not provide housing or transportation. Families should establish who is responsible outside teaching hours.
Succeed recommends shadowing for understanding workplace roles, simulation for guided practice and feedback, and research for exploring scientific inquiry. Compare the actual timetable and your permitted contribution before choosing. None of these formats by itself establishes an admissions benefit.
Explore more
Useful guides
Sources
- Penn State College of Medicine — Research Internships and Observation for High School Students
- Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program — FAQs
- Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program — Program Description
- Stanford Medicine — Standardized Patient Program
- Stanford Clinical Summer Internship — Frequently Asked Questions
- Stanford Clinical Summer Internship — Curriculum
- Sherwood Forest Hospitals — Work Experience and Non-Clinical Work Placements Policy
- NHS England — Myths About Finding Work Experience
- NHS England — Work Experience FAQs
- Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust — Work Experience
- Johns Hopkins Medicine — Observer Application
- Johns Hopkins Medicine — Observerships
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