I asked 43 physicians about letting high school students shadow them
Students can't fix a problem nobody has measured. So I surveyed practicing physicians about what stops them from hosting high schoolers, what makes a shadowing day worth it, and what would help. Here is what they told me.
Most Physicians Are Willing to Let Students Shadow
72% would likely host with the right support
Most of the physicians I surveyed want students in their clinics. More than half chose the highest possible rating when I asked how likely they would be to host a student with the right support. The willingness is already there. Everything around it is missing.
- 72%would likely host a high school student if the right resources were available.
- 74%rated standardized shadowing guidelines a 4 or 5 out of 5 for usefulness.
- 23 of 43chose the top rating of 5 on each of the two questions.
Likelihood of hosting with resources
Rating out of 5, all 43 physicians
- Rating 5 (23)
- Rating 4 (8)
- Rating 3 or lower (12)
Usefulness of standardized guidelines
Number of physicians choosing each rating
4.26average out of 5. 32 of 43 (74%) chose 4 or 5.
- 0
- 1
- 10
- 9
- 23
High school students shouldn't have to endlessly email physicians with no hope of finding any shadowing opportunities.
Zoha Waheed
The Biggest Barriers to Physician Shadowing
Time, structure, and hospital policy
When I asked what gets in the way, time came first. A physician with a full clinic has few minutes to spare. Look past time, though, and the next four barriers all describe the same gap: no program to follow, unclear hospital policies, and no guidance on privacy or liability. A well-built program can close that gap.
- 79%named lack of physician time, the most common barrier (34 of 43).
- 56%said no formal shadowing structure exists for them to follow.
- 22 + 22named hospital policies and patient privacy, tied for third.
The leading barrier: physician time
Physicians naming lack of time
- Named time (34)
- Did not (9)
Why doctors say no to high school students shadowing them
Share of 43 physicians selecting each
The four most common barriers after time all come down to missing rules and structure, and that is a problem someone can solve.
Why Some Doctors Have Never Hosted a Student
What worries the 16 physicians who never said yes
Sixteen of the physicians I surveyed had never hosted a high school student. They are the doctors students most need to reach, so I looked at what holds them back. Hospital policies and doubts about student preparedness worried them far more than they worried experienced hosts.
- 75%of never-hosts named hospital policies, against 37% of experienced hosts.
- 56%of never-hosts named student preparedness, against 22% of experienced hosts.
- 3.50average likelihood of hosting among never-hosts, against 4.56 for experienced hosts.
Barriers by hosting experience
Share of each group naming the barrier, sorted by the size of the gap
- Never hosted a student (16)
- Has hosted a student (27)
- Hospital or institutional policiesgap+38 ptsNever hosted: 75% (12 of 16)Has hosted: 37% (10 of 27)
- Student preparedness and professionalismgap+34 ptsNever hosted: 56% (9 of 16)Has hosted: 22% (6 of 27)
- Liability or administrative concernsgap+19 ptsNever hosted: 56% (9 of 16)Has hosted: 37% (10 of 27)
- Lack of formal shadowing structuregap+11 ptsNever hosted: 62% (10 of 16)Has hosted: 52% (14 of 27)
- Patient privacy and confidentialitygap+8 ptsNever hosted: 56% (9 of 16)Has hosted: 48% (13 of 27)
- Uncertainty about what students may dogap+5 ptsNever hosted: 31% (5 of 16)Has hosted: 26% (7 of 27)
- Lack of physician timegap−6 ptsNever hosted: 75% (12 of 16)Has hosted: 81% (22 of 27)
- Difficulty coordinating schedulesgap−17 ptsNever hosted: 31% (5 of 16)Has hosted: 48% (13 of 27)
Only the top two gaps reach p < .05 on a Fisher exact test (policies p = .027, preparedness p = .045), and no correction was made for running eight comparisons.
Guidelines and willingness to host
Spearman correlation, by group
Likelihood of hosting with resources
Average rating out of 5, by group
Both groups rated guidelines about equally useful (4.13 and 4.33).
Among physicians who had never hosted a student, the ones who saw the most value in clear guidelines were the most willing to say yes.
What Makes a Shadowing Experience Meaningful
Physicians chose questions over procedures
Students often assume the best shadowing day is the one with the most dramatic procedure. Physicians see it differently. They told me the value comes from watching patient care up close and asking about it.
- 30 of 43chose direct observation of patient care as a top factor.
- 22 of 43chose the ability to ask questions.
- 8 of 43chose exposure to medical procedures.
The top factor: watching patient care
Physicians choosing direct observation
- Chose it (30)
- Did not (13)
Factors physicians called most important
Share of 43 physicians selecting each
Even with shadowing opportunities, it was difficult to find a way to maximize their usefulness.
Zoha Waheed
What Doctors Want Students to Know Before Shadowing
Prepared students and clear rules
I asked physicians what would make hosting easier. Their top answer was a student who arrives already oriented. That answer is why Shadow Pre-MD exists. Preparation is the one part of this problem a student can solve alone.
- 65%asked for a student orientation program or handbook.
- 60%asked for clear institutional guidelines on what students may observe.
- 44%asked for suggested questions or discussion topics.
The top request: a student handbook
Physicians asking for a student handbook
- Asked for it (28)
- Did not (15)
Every resource physicians requested
Share of 43 physicians selecting each
Each barrier, beside the resource meant to solve it
- Barrier named35%Student preparednessResource requested65%Student orientation handbook
- Barrier named51%Hospital or institutional policiesResource requested60%Clear guidelines on what students may observe
- Barrier named51%Privacy and confidentialityResource requested33%HIPAA and confidentiality training
- Barrier named56%No formal shadowing structureResource requested28%Structured shadowing schedule
I promise if you read through our guide and follow its steps, you will be able to take away something useful from your shadowing.
Zoha Waheed
Who Took the Physician Shadowing Survey
How to read these results
I want these results read honestly. Forty-three physicians is enough to see patterns and too few to speak for every doctor. Most of my respondents practiced internal medicine, and physicians who answer a survey about shadowing may already care more about teaching.
- 43practicing physicians completed the survey.
- 27had hosted a high school student before.
- 16had never hosted one.
Hosting experience
Each mark is one physician
- Never hosted a student (16)
- Has hosted a student (27)
Specialty
Number of physicians, out of 43
Small sample
43 physicians can describe patterns. They cannot stand in for all physicians.
Weighted toward internal medicine
24 of 43 respondents practiced internal medicine, and several specialties had three or fewer.
Who chose to answer
Physicians willing to fill out a survey about shadowing may already care more about teaching students.
Stated intentions
Saying you would host a student is different from hosting one.
One point in time
A cross-sectional survey measures beliefs on one day and cannot establish cause.
Checkbox limits
Some questions asked for up to three choices, and the form did not enforce the limit, so those counts are descriptive.
Physician shadowing survey results at a glance
- 79%named lack of time as a barrier
- 72%would likely host with the right resources
- 65%asked for a student orientation handbook
- 51%said asking questions makes shadowing meaningful
The abstract and its background reading
- Waheed, Z. S. (2026). Physician perspectives on high school shadowing: Barriers, educational value, and opportunities for standardization. Cross-sectional survey of 43 practicing physicians. Abstract submitted to the 2027 Medical Education Innovation Conference.
- Kitsis, E. A., & Goldsammler, M. (2013). Physician shadowing: A review of the literature and proposal for guidelines. Academic Medicine, 88(1), 102–110. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0b013e318277d5b2
- Baveja, Fonkeu, & Kelly. (2024). The value of medical shadowing for high school students: A three-dimensional view. Medical Teacher, 46(4), 584–589. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159X.2023.2243024
- Kendrick, Withey, Batson, Wright, & O'Rourke. (2020). Predictors of satisfying and impactful clinical shadowing experiences for underrepresented minority high school students interested in healthcare careers. Journal of the National Medical Association, 112(4), 381–386. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnma.2020.04.007