PHILADELPHIA – Today, Penn Medicine, Heights Philadelphia (“Heights”), and Philadelphia City Council Majority Leader Katherine Gilmore Richardson (At-Large), are hosting a special career event for Heights students enrolled in the Early Career Learners Healthcare program, to apply and interview for entry level jobs at Penn Medicine. The Early Career Learners Healthcare program offers an opportunity for high school seniors, planning to work in the healthcare and human services industry post graduation, to have clear next steps for their ongoing career development. All participants receive continued career coaching and development for up to one year.
Penn’s collaboration with Heights and Majority Leader Gilmore Richardson’s office, creates a pathway for students to achieve their career goals. As a global healthcare hub, Philadelphia is home to countless opportunities in the health and science field, however, it can be overwhelming for young people to navigate. In working with a major healthcare institution, Heights connects students directly to jobs, streamlining the process and supporting the health system in their employment needs.
Students enrolled in the Early Career Learners Healthcare program participated in professional development training, received career coaching, developed personal career plans, and acquired help with navigating the application process for their chosen career or training pathway. At the event, Heights students will have the opportunity to apply the skills developed through the program, and interview for a variety of open positions within Penn Medicine.
“As a profession, health care offers meaningful and rewarding work,” said Kevin B. Mahoney, CEO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. “By introducing students to the field, we’re creating a pathway to careers that enrich lives and make a difference in others. Encouraging careers in health care also helps to strengthen the field overall, ensuring a pipeline poised to answer the needs of the future.”
“Healthcare is an essential and impactful pathway for our talented pool of students where they can secure economic mobility,” said Sean E. Vereen, Ed.D., Co-President, Heights Philadelphia. “We are thrilled to grow our relationship with world renowned healthcare institutions like Penn Medicine right here in our city, and look forward to our continued collaboration with Councilmember Gilmore Richardson to further opportunity for students of Philadelphia.”
"Advancing workforce development opportunities has been one of my top priorities since becoming a member of Philadelphia City Council," said City of Philadelphia Majority Leader Katherine Gilmore Richardson. "We know that all of our young people may not go off to college, but they must be college or career ready upon graduation. That's why I'm thrilled to partner with Heights Philadelphia and Penn to place young Philadelphians on the path to pursuing a family-sustaining and supporting career opportunity. As a former Penn Medicine, whose parents worked at Pennsylvania Hospital for more than 70 years combined, I know from experience just how life changing these opportunities can be."
Penn Medicine is one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, excellence in patient care, and community service. The organization consists of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Penn’s Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine, founded in 1765 as the nation’s first medical school.
The Perelman School of Medicine is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $550 million awarded in the 2022 fiscal year. Home to a proud history of “firsts” in medicine, Penn Medicine teams have pioneered discoveries and innovations that have shaped modern medicine, including recent breakthroughs such as CAR T cell therapy for cancer and the mRNA technology used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System’s patient care facilities stretch from the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania to the New Jersey shore. These include the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, Penn Medicine Princeton Health, and Pennsylvania Hospital—the nation’s first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.
Penn Medicine is an $11.1 billion enterprise powered by more than 49,000 talented faculty and staff.