Internship
Weekly Reflections
In addition to the learning modules, we ask interns to complete weekly reflections to deepen their learning and capture their growth over the summer. These reflections create space for you to pause and connect what you are seeing on the van with the concepts you are exploring in training, to process your experiences working in the community, and to notice how your perspectives on health, equity, and your own career path are evolving. They also help The Family Van understand the impact of the internship program and elevate student voices in our storytelling and communications.
Logistics:
Reflections are due on Sunday’s at 11:59pm EST and should respond to the prompt posted below for that week.
Each reflection should be approximately one page, typed.
Please include your name and the week number at the top of your document.
Please use the following file naming convention: YYYY-MM-DD_LastName_Week # Reflection
Please email your reflection to VolunteerFamilyVan@hms.harvard.edu.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask!
Week 1
June 22 - June 26
Due: Sunday, June 28 at 11:59pm
Week 2
June 29 - July 3
Due: Sunday, July 5 at 11:59pm
Reflect on your first week on The Family Van. Consider how you felt coming into this experience and how you feel now, any moments or interactions with clients or community members that stand out to you and what you noticed about the neighborhoods we serve. You might also reflect on what, if anything, surprised you compared to your expectations and how this first week has shaped what you hope to learn or contribute over the rest of the summer.
Reflect on your second week with The Family Van. On Monday, you spent time with Stop & Shop nutritionist Christine and heard from Mary Kathryn about our Heat Stress program during an extreme heat wave in Boston. Consider how these experiences connect to the work we do on the van: What is one concrete idea or message about nutrition or staying safe in extreme heat that you would feel confident sharing with clients, and why is it important for the communities we serve? You might also reflect on any moments from this week that stood out to you and how these experiences are shaping your understanding of health equity.
Week 3
July 6 - July 10
Due: Sunday, July 12 at 11:59pm
Congratulations! You have now reached the halfway point of your internship. We hope that you have been enjoying your time and learning a lot about not only what it means to provide low-barrier access to care, but also about yourself and your own career path. For this week’s reflection we would love to hear what you feel is going well so far, and what isn’t going as well or has been challenging for you? Looking back at your first four weeks on the van, describe one moment or interaction with a client that has really stuck with you, including what was happening, what your role was, and why this experience has stayed with you or what it has meant for your learning.
Week 5
July 20 - July 24
Due: Sunday, July 26 at 11:59pm
No reflection this week!
Week 4
July 13 - July 17
Due: Sunday, July 19 at 11:59pm
Thinking about this past week, what’s one moment that really stuck with you, and why did it stand out? How did any of the things we did (the cooking class with Christine, the tour of Brigham & Women’s with Dr. Dan, staying open during the Farmer’s Market in East Boston, or tabling at Urban Farming Institute) affect the way you think about health equity or access to care?
Week 6
July 27 - July 31
Due: Sunday, August 2 at 11:59pm
Thinking back to your MEDscience visit on Monday, what is one moment - during the intubation practice, the bedside case scenario, or the interactions with your MEDscience teachers (Britt & Mia) and Julie Joyal - that really stuck with you and why? How did it change (or confirm) how you see yourself in the healthcare setting? Now thinking back to how you worked as a team on the bedside case scenario, is there anything that you would go back and do differently? Anything you would do exactly the same? What did this teach you about the importance of teamwork in the healthcare setting?
Week 7
August 3 - August 7
Due: Sunday, August 9 at 11:59pm
For this week’s reflection, think back on our visit to Sanofi: the conversations with staff from the Patient Support Services and Corporate Social Responsibility teams about their day-to-day work and career paths, the advice they shared, and the robotic lab that we saw. Describe one or two moments that stood out the most to you and why. How did hearing about their journeys shape or shift your understanding of careers in healthcare, biotech, or corporate social impact? What connections can you make between what you learned at Sanofi and your own interests, values, or goals for the future?
Week 8
August 10 - August 14
Due: Sunday, August 16 at 11:59pm
Can you believe it is already week 8??? As you complete your time with us, we hope you’ve not only learned about what it means to provide low-barrier access to care, but also gained insight into yourself, your strengths, and your evolving career interests. For this final reflection, we’d like you to look back on the full internship experience and share what you feel went well overall, as well as what was challenging or did not go as you expected. Thinking about your time on the van and in the communities we serve, describe one moment or interaction with a client that has stayed with you. Finally, reflect on how this internship has shaped (or reshaped) your ideas about your future path.