Penn Medicine Internship 2027–2028: Programs, Deadlines & How to Apply

Last updated: October 2026

Penn Medicine's only dated non-clinical internship for summer 2027 is graduate-only, and it closes on 16 November 2026. The Ambulatory Management Internship is a 10-week program between May and August 2027 for current master's students in an MHA, MPH, MBA or similar program, and applicants hear back the week of 16 November. Undergraduates have two other intern postings on Penn Medicine's career site, a Press Office Intern and a Multimedia Production Intern in Philadelphia. Both are per diem with no deadline shown. In plain words: graduate students apply this fall to intern in summer 2027; undergraduates can apply to the communications roles now. This guide covers Penn Medicine, the University of Pennsylvania Health System and its medical school, not the university's other student programs.

Quick Facts

The Ambulatory Management Internship is graduate-only and closes 16 November 2026; the two undergraduate-eligible communications internships are undated, and none of the three posts pay.

Externships are short, remote programs where you finish a real project for a real company, most commonly over 8 weeks at 5 to 10 hours a week, so one can run alongside your Penn Medicine application. Penn Medicine also uses the word "extern" for its own nurse extern program, which is a different thing. The Institute of Mental Health Healthcare Operations & Consulting Externship matches the ambulatory operations track, and the Health-Ade (Generous Brands) Consumer Behavior & Insights Externship fits communications work. Explore all Externships.

What Is a Penn Medicine Internship?

A Penn Medicine internship is a student role at the University of Pennsylvania Health System and its Perelman School of Medicine, which describes itself as "an $11.9 billion enterprise powered by nearly 49,000 talented faculty and staff" on its about page. Its own career site posts a small number of non-clinical internships rather than one large summer class: a graduate administrative program and two communications internships. Nurse extern programs and school-arranged clinical placements are separate, and research programs run through the medical school aren't part of this guide.

When Do Penn Medicine Internship Applications Open for 2027–2028?

Penn Medicine runs one dated internship cycle that we could document: the Ambulatory Management Internship, a 10-week program between May and August 2027 with applications accepted until 16 November 2026, about six months before a May start. We couldn't recover posting dates or windows for earlier cycles from Penn Medicine's own pages, and the two communications internships show no start, end or deadline at all. A graduate-fellowship page on the same site is also out of date, still describing a 2023 application cycle, so don't rely on it.

How to read this page: our dates come from tracking previous recruiting cycles and daily posting data. Treat them as informed estimates based on historical patterns, not confirmed dates. The company's official careers page is always the most current source. If a role is posted there, go by that, even if this page suggests the window hasn't opened yet.

Why You Must Apply the Week Applications Open

For the graduate program the end date is fixed: Penn Medicine accepts applications on a rolling basis only until 16 November 2026 and tells candidates their status that same week. A posting that stops accepting applications on a stated date gives no reason to wait. The communications internships carry no end date, but per diem requisitions can be removed at any time, so apply while they're listed rather than assuming they stay open.

Which Penn Medicine Internship Programs Should You Target?

These are the three non-clinical internships on Penn Medicine's career site on 26 October 2026. The graduate-only program is labelled as such.

Read each posting before applying. The Ambulatory Management posting lists its requirements and the personal statement.

What Are the Eligibility Requirements?

Each posting sets its own rules. These come from the three requisitions.

• Ambulatory Management (graduate-only): currently enrolled in an MHA, MPH or similar master's program, with a bachelor's degree required by the program start. Integrated five-year BS/MHA students also qualify. A personal statement of no more than one page is required.

• Press Office Intern: a high school diploma or GED, or a current undergraduate or graduate student in journalism, communications, public relations, media studies or a related field. Strong written and verbal communication is required.

• Multimedia Production Intern: a current undergraduate or graduate student in journalism, communications, media production, film, digital media, public relations, marketing or a related field.

• Work authorization and GPA: neither is stated in the three postings.

• Penn Medicine employees: current employees apply through a separate internal job board.

Can Undergraduates Apply to Penn Medicine?

Yes, for the two communications internships, but not for the Ambulatory Management program. The communications postings are narrower than a large summer class: they sit on one newsroom-style team, are per diem, and don't state hours, dates or pay. Undergraduates interested in administration should watch the careers site for new postings rather than assume the graduate program will open to them.

What Skills Does Penn Medicine Look For, and How Do You Build Them?

Only three non-clinical postings are live, so we can't chart skills across them. The Ambulatory Management posting names operations, data analysis, strategic planning, finance and practice management, and expects a final project presentation. The Press Office posting lists media pitching, earned-media tracking, press logistics and basic reporting on media reach. The Multimedia posting covers video and photo production, editing, interviews and short-form social content. None names specific software.

Note: Three postings are too few for a skill chart, which would overstate any single skill. The postings are summarized above and in the table below. Source: Penn Medicine careers site, 26 October 2026.

How Is Demand for Healthcare Administration Interns Moving Right Now?

Build These Skills Before You Apply

Each row maps a task from Penn Medicine's postings to a remote Externship that produces a finished project.

None of these Externships is affiliated with Penn Medicine. Most run about 8 weeks, so one started in November can finish before spring.

What Is the Penn Medicine Application and Interview Process Like?

Penn Medicine doesn't describe interview rounds, so this combines what the postings say.

1. Search the careers site with the keyword "intern"; the site's keywords parameter is ignored, so use the search box.

2. Apply on the posting. Ambulatory Management needs a one-page personal statement about your goals and what you hope to gain from the program.

3. Wait for status. Ambulatory Management applicants hear back the week of 16 November 2026. The communications postings give no timeline.

4. Interview and placement. The posting says specific locations are discussed during the interview process.

What the Community Says

We found no first-hand Reddit posts about Penn Medicine's student internships; the threads we located were about employees or pre-med advice. Penn Medicine's postings are the only source here, and none publishes pay or a conversion rate.

How Do You Stand Out for a Penn Medicine Internship?

First, match the posting exactly: graduate students should lead their personal statement with healthcare administration goals, and communications applicants should attach writing or video samples. Second, show project evidence that fits the work, such as a data analysis, a pitch or a short edited piece. Third, apply early, because these are small per diem programs with no published class size. Penn Medicine publishes no applicant counts or return-offer rate, so rely on what the postings state.

What Other Companies Should You Consider?

These academic health systems and children's hospitals also run non-clinical student programs.

For more health systems and healthcare consulting employers, see our healthcare internships summer 2027 guide.

FAQ

Can I still apply for a summer 2026 Penn Medicine internship?

No. We couldn't find a 2026 cycle on Penn Medicine's own pages, and any summer 2026 program has finished. The postings open now are for summer 2027: the graduate-only Ambulatory Management Internship, which closes 16 November 2026, and two communications internships with no stated dates.

When does the Penn Medicine Ambulatory Management Internship close?

Penn Medicine accepts applications on a rolling basis until 16 November 2026 and says candidates will hear back about their status during the week of 16 November. The program itself is 10 weeks between May and August 2027, and it's open to graduate students only.

Is the Penn Medicine internship only for graduate students?

The Ambulatory Management Internship is graduate-only, for students in an MHA, MPH, MBA or similar healthcare administration master's program. Undergraduates can apply to the Press Office Intern and Multimedia Production Intern postings, which accept current undergraduate or graduate students in communications and media fields.

Do Penn Medicine interns get paid?

Penn Medicine doesn't publish pay for any of the three postings. All are listed as per diem, which isn't a pay statement, so we can't say they are paid or give a rate. Ask the recruiter or check the posting again before you accept an offer.

Where are Penn Medicine internships located?

The Press Office and Multimedia Production internships are at 3535 Market Street in Philadelphia, with the Press Office role hybrid. The Ambulatory Management posting lists Radnor, Pennsylvania, with project work at Penn Medicine locations across the Philadelphia region, discussed during interviews.

Is Penn Medicine the same as the University of Pennsylvania?

Not entirely. Penn Medicine is the University of Pennsylvania Health System together with the Perelman School of Medicine. This guide covers the internships Penn Medicine posts on its own career site, not the university's student programs at large or the medical school's separate research programs.

Does Penn Medicine have nurse externships?

Yes. Its career site lists Summer 2027 Nurse Extern Program postings and other nurse extern roles at hospitals in Philadelphia, Lancaster and Exton. They're clinical programs for nursing students and aren't covered here. Penn Medicine's use of "extern" differs from Extern's remote Externships.

What is the Penn Medicine Administrative Fellowship?

It's a post-graduate fellowship for people who have finished a master's, not an internship for current students. The fellowship page on Penn Medicine's career site is out of date, still describing a 2023 cycle, so check with Penn Medicine directly before relying on it.

Penn Medicine's graduate-only Ambulatory Management Internship closes on 16 November 2026, and the communications internships are listed now. If you want a finished project to discuss in the interview, a remote Externship can run alongside your application.