College to Career
Diversity Internship Program (CDIP)
Creating the next generation of health care leaders
[Photo] 2021 HASC CDIP Interns
Program Details
In 2018, HASC collaborated with Health Career Connection (HCC), a national internship program that connects talented and diverse undergraduate students and recent graduates — particularly those from under-represented backgrounds, to successfully pursue health care and public health careers.
HASC’s HCC-workforce initiative effort has been branded as the College to Career Diversity Internship Program, or CDIP for short. CDIP is a 10-week, full-time, paid, project-based summer internship program which identifies and recruits local, diverse, high-performing college upperclassmen and recent graduates seeking health care careers and whose interests and skills align with member hospitals’ needs, objectives and projects. CDIP also provides our members the opportunity to meet broader diversity and workforce initiatives and serves as an efficient means of integrating new talent into open positions.
HASC works with HCC to connect with leadership at member hospitals to assist with:
- Hosting an intern
- Identifying your substantive project
- Completing the agreement process
- Recruitment via targeted promotions via HASC communications channels and digital marketing platforms
Host Organization/Preceptor Role
Your role as a Host Organization/Preceptor:
- Offer a full-time, 10-week internship experience
- Provide intern with meaningful projects and learning opportunities
- Dedicate a preceptor to provide guidance and mentorship
- Offer intern with exposure to leadership, structure, operations and decisions
- Fund the cost of an HCC intern: $7,500
Matching Process
Candidates and preceptors will be alerted by HCC regarding interviews. Once your site has interviewed, HCC will survey the intern and the host site, compare feedback and screen for a potential match.
Interns are provided up to three interviews and sites are provided up to three interviewees. However, in certain cases, the numbers may vary. CDIP’s goal is to make appropriate matches between intern interest and member project descriptions.
Program Timeline
- September – March: HASC member host sites are recruited.
- September – January: Host sites submit their project scopes of work. Submissions are reviewed by HCC. HCC recruits and screens candidates applying for Southern California internship placement.
- January – February: Candidates are matched by project objectives, skills and site.
- March – April: Host sites conduct interviews. Candidate and site submit feedback on interviews.
- May – June: HCC confirms host-intern matches. HCC on-boards interns into program. Host sites and interns connect to complete additional onboarding processes.
- May – September: Summer internships and program are active and completed.
How to Host
To host a 2022 CDIP intern, please complete the Summer Internship Host Interest Form and notify HASC Workforce Development Program Manager Lisa Mitchell of your interest. Mitchell is also available to answer questions about the program. However, core program onboarding is done through Patricia Etem from HCC.
Note: The CDIP Internship Application and Agency Intent Form are made available each year in September.
Cost
The total cost is $7,500 for one intern. Out of your program fee, the interns receive a $4,300 stipend.
If you know of an interested fourth-year undergraduate and/or recent graduate in the fields of public health or health care, encourage them to submit an HCC Internship Application.
Return on Investment
CDIP, as endorsed by leaders from other HCC programs, produces a positive return, and:
- Accomplishes high-level, practical scopes of work for hospitals with low project cost and high completion rate
- Advances workforce development and diversity objectives
- Strengthens the local economy, by helping local health care dollars stay in the community
- Addresses local and regional Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs) by expanding the number of health care workers to meet the demands for services
- Improves long-term onboarding of new talent through efficient program framework
Proven Track Record
- 100 percent of CDIP preceptors say hosting an intern is a good return on investment.
- 95 percent of CDIP preceptors were satisfied with their intern’s contribution to the organization.
- 75 percent of CDIP alumni are now employed and working in health-related fields.
CDIP Alumni Within HASC Members
Joi Torrence-Hill, MHA
Senior Director, Transaction & Integration Management, City of Hope
“During my internship, I learned the importance of building and cultivating relationships with those with whom you work. This lesson has guided me daily in my current position as I work with new people in an organization that is driven by the delivery of quality patient care and service excellence. HCC (HASC CDIP) is a worthwhile investment.”
Ikenna Mmeje
Chief Operating Officer
MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center & Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach
Ikenna Mmeje is an American College of Healthcare Executives Fellow. He has served in various leadership positions at Sierra Vista Hospital, Inc., Doctors Hospital of Manteca, Sutter Health, and Tenet Health. Mr. Mmeje tells us HCC was a stepping stone to finding his authentic health career, and is one of many CDIP success stories.
Photo Gallery
CDIP intern Beverly K. Ntagu with HASC member City of Hope, Rivergrade, preceptors. Ntagu interned in the Diversity and Inclusion Department with the Chief Human Resources Office reviewing and developing efficient diversity resource guidelines. She also assisted with the coordination of City of Hope’s 8th Annual Tree Decoration and 1st Annual Diversity Week. City of Hope hosted 5 interns in the 2019 cycle.
CDIP intern Han Choi with HASC member Fountain Valley Regional Hospital preceptor Peggy Schaeffer. Choi interned in the NICU, PICU, and PEDS departments researching and establishing a breast milk donation program. She mastered a wide range of components for establishing a new program, including following regulations, researching best practices, meeting with potential vendors, and seeking licensure.
CDIP intern Calvin Huang with HASC associate member MedPOINT Management preceptor, Dr. Brendan Mull. Huang created an efficient and effective data upload system for annual wellness visit uploads in order to check for compliance for Medicare beneficiaries. He also worked with HEDIS specialists searching and extracting medical records that were compliant with requirements for a mock audit for HealthNet.
CDIP intern Stephanie Diaz with HASC member Memorial Care Long Beach Medical Center and Miller Children’s and Women’s Hospital. Diaz helped initiate the MDI project, which was a campus-wide project on creating a database of the rules and regulations required to facilitate patients in their new outpatient clinic. She had the opportunity to conduct her own research and work with department leaders.
Contact Information
For more information, contact:
Lisa R. Mitchell
Program Manager, Workforce Development
HASC
(213) 538-0722
lmitchell@hasc.org
Patricia S. Etem, MPH
Director, Southern California & Coachella Valley
Health Career Connection
petem@healthcareers.org
(562) 208-3508
Frequently Asked Questions
How do HASC members enroll in CDIP?
HASC members may email Lisa Mitchell and cc Patricia Etem to express interest in CDIP enrollment. See “Contact Information” tab.
Are project descriptions required prior to expressing interest in HASC CDIP?
No, however, members are expected to their submit project description forms to HCC no later than April 1, 2022.
How do I receive the project description form?
HCC will email the HASC member the Project Description Form after the Summer Internship Host Interest Form is submitted.
Once a HASC member agrees to host an intern, what should they expect from HCC?
- A participation agreement is sent to the HASC member’s point of contact that handles or signs contracts.
- Host sites review the participation agreement and make edit requests to HCC.
- Once the agreement language is confirmed and signed, both parties move forward to interviews.
*HCC often provides host sites candidates to interview, prior to, or as the participation agreement process is underway.
How diverse is the CDIP candidate pool?
HCC generates CDIP’s candidate pool. The pool consists of 150+ college and recent graduate candidates from many college majors in the health care field, including: nursing, business, biology, technology, psychobiology and public health.
What is the interview process like for HASC host sites?
- HASC members announce their week of availability to interview candidates sometime between March 1 and May 2, 2022.
- HCC selects two to three candidates that match the HASC member’s project description form.
- HCC informs candidates of their interview sites and host sites of their interview candidates.
- HCC candidates contact their assigned HASC member to set up their respective interviews.
- HASC members may choose to interview in person, by video conference or by telephone.
- Candidates and HASC members submit their interview feedback to HCC.
- HCC sends out matching confirmations to both parties when matching occurs. If matching does not occur, further communication is done and potential new candidates, if available, are reassigned to HASC member for interviews.
How competitive are CDIP candidates?
CDIP candidates are highly sought out for internships within and outside of HCC. It is ideal to interview candidates prior to May 9, 2022 to ensure candidate security.
Where are CDIP interns from?
HCC has a diverse candidate pool with candidates coming from across the U.S. Regionally, interns come from UCs, CSUs and local privates. Out-of-state interns tend to be California natives who aspire to come back and give back to their home communities.
Once HASC members conduct all their interviews, what is the “matching” process?
HASC members and intern candidates complete a short ranking questionnaire that helps guide the matching process. HCC reviews responses and makes matching selections based on the HASC member’s project description form.
Can CDIP interns be hired post their internship?
HASC members can hire CDIP interns after the successful completion of their internship. However, they should alert HCC of potential hiring desires early on, so HCC can prioritize class standing (seniors and recent graduates) as a “matching” factor.
What is CDIP’s onboarding process?
Onboarding processes vary by agency. It is vital for host sites to inform HCC of their onboarding process, such as a background checks, TB test, and internal HR paperwork. It is important to inform HCC early on so candidates can complete their required screenings on time and not delay their internship start date.
Does HCC or HASC cover intern onboarding fees?
No, neither HCC or HASC cover this cost for the interns. However, we encourage participating HASC members to help supplement or cover background checks to make it more accessible for interns to onboard.
Are DACA students eligible for HASC CDIP?
Yes, DACA students are eligible to be part of the HCC candidate pool. Candidates must have a work permit that is valid for internship dates, as it is required for most onboarding purposes. However, accepting DACA candidates is at the sole discretion of the participating HASC member.
How does HCC support participating HASC member preceptors?
HCC communicates with the preceptors from each site. HCC holds two HASC CDIP Preceptor Orientation Webinars prior to the summer programming. In addition, Patricia Etem, HCC’s Southern California & Coachella Valley Director, can answers inquiries and offer in-person meetings, when necessary.
When are HASC members informed of their “match?”
HASC member preceptors are informed typically within 1-2 weeks after the interview is conducted and feedback forms are received. Matched preceptors and interns are encouraged to connect immediately after the match to confirm a start date. Start dates begin at the conclusion of the intern’s spring semester.
How likely are HASC members to host their first-choice candidate?
Southern California excels at matching interns and preceptors to whom they’ve ranked as their first choice; our first-choice-to-first-choice match rate is above 88 percent.
Who should HASC participating members contact if they have more questions/concerns?
HASC members may email Lisa Mitchell and cc Patricia Etem to should they have further questions/concerns. See “Contact Information” tab.
