Medicine Internship in Mongolia

Learn directly from doctors in hospitals and do health checks during outreaches

Destination

Mongolia

Age

16+ y/o

Minimum Stay

1 week

Start Date

Anytime

Accommodation

Homestay

What’s included

Transportation

To and from the airport, plus everything in between. Daily transport to your placement and back.

Certification

Certified record of service hours, workshops, and activities for your CV.

Pre-departure Support

Everything you need to prepare for your trip, including visa advice, cultural awareness training, access to your dedicated pre-departure portal, and more.

Socials & Fun

Regularly organized social events with other participants.

Request info

Starting at €1,780 for 1 week

Flexible 0% Interest payments
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Trip Overview

Learn the medical ropes

Shadow doctors and nurses in hospitals and clinics, observing their daily routines and procedures across a huge range of departments.

Learn vital healthcare skills

Acquire practical knowledge and skills in areas like disease prevention, patient assessment, and basic medical procedures to help with your career.

Coordinate outreach programmes

Participate in community outreach programmes, providing essential healthcare to disadvantaged populations that don’t have easy healthcare access.

Experience Mongolian culture

Live with a host family, explore the incredible city of Ulaanbaatar, and experience the unique customs and traditions of Mongolia.

Push yourself and grow

Challenge yourself, develop independence and confidence, and gain valuable international experience that will shape your future career.

What you need to know

Overview

This internship is perfect for people who are applying to study medicine, or medical students trying to decide on a specialisation to pursue. It’s also a great option for those wanting to see the day-to-day functions of a hospital in a developing world. You should be hungry to learn, and willing to ask questions.

During your internship, you’ll be able to broaden your practical medical knowledge and strengthen skills like communication. You’ll also learn a great deal about the healthcare challenges that people face in Mongolia.

Our medical internship in Mongolia runs throughout the year.

A Day in the Life

A typical day on the medical internship in Mongolia begins in your host family home with breakfast and morning chatter. With your scrubs and medical clogs packed, you will take public transport to your medical placement.

You will shadow doctors in clinics or hospitals, following them on their rounds and observing procedures. You work for around 8 hours a day, Monday to Friday. You also have the option of night-shift work. This can be discussed with your supervisor.

Once a month, you will gain hands-on medicine work experience in Mongolia at an outreach. You will take blood pressure readings, learn about different conditions, and ask the on-duty doctor questions about different patients.

After a busy week of interning, use your free time in the evenings and over weekends to explore Mongolia. Visit the nomads, plan a trip to Terelj National Park, and make sure to stop over in the Gobi Desert.

Aims & Impact

The main aim of this internship in Mongolia is to help you understand the medical practices of a developing country. We also hope to encourage an exchange of medical knowledge between you and the team you work with.

We organise monthly outreaches for you to take part in. Here, you will provide disadvantaged people with healthcare services. These services include blood pressure checks and distributing free medication.

To ensure that we stay true to our long-term vision for healthcare in Mongolia, we have committed to four goals in our Medical Management Plan:

Encourage an understanding of medical practices and promote an exchange of medical knowledge
Promote Awareness of Non-Communicable Diseases
Improve Access to Basic Healthcare for Disadvantaged Groups
Improve Hygiene Standards

Dr Erdenechimeg, from a Mongolian medical internship placement says:

“The Medicine & Healthcare [interns] are able to pose any questions about areas that they would like to explore further, and I’m always delighted to spend the necessary time providing the relevant information to expand their practical and theoretical knowledge.

I still maintain good contacts with many former volunteers, who repeatedly stress their desire to become qualified and proficient doctors, partly based on their experience here in Mongolia. I hope that this continues and that any future volunteers feel that they can gain some experience whilst working in our hospitals together with our qualified doctors, in a way that will be beneficial to them regardless of their area of expertise.”

Join us on a medical internship in Mongolia to kickstart your career in medicine today.

Activities

Based in a hospital or clinic, you will have a lot to do for the duration of your medical internship in Mongolia. Here are some of the tasks you can expect to get involved with:

Shadow doctors and observe daily routines
Rotate through a variety of departments
Help staff during community outreach activities

Your work will be split into three areas:

Shadow Mongolian doctors and observe daily routines

Take notes, ask questions, and get to know the dedicated professionals who work to help, improve and save lives. Through active observations, you will build relationships with your supervising doctor, and tap into a wealth of medical knowledge! You also have an opportunity to observe surgeries.

Rotate through a variety of departments

To really know what medical specialisation you’re interested in, you need to explore your options. You will rotate through medical departments like cardiology, neurology, the intensive care unit, or general surgery. This is a wonderful way to fully explore the medical facilities and practises of a developing country.

Help staff during community outreach activities

Every month, we organise a community outreach. These outreaches are held at a community centre and focus on providing healthcare to homeless people. Here, you’ll help distribute meals to people in attendance, assist the doctor on duty, and distribute medication to people. You’ll get some practical experience by helping to record blood pressure readings or check the weight/height of patients.

The doctor on duty will supervise you, and answer any questions you have.

Medical Departments

You will be able to work in a number of different departments, such as:

Surgical wards
A neurosurgery ward
A cardiology department
ICU
Emergency
E.N.T
Endoscopy
A scientific research centre

If you’re interested in a specific department, please feel free to contact us and we can help advise you.

Map & Location

Mongolia, known as “The Land of the Eternal Blue Sky”, is a true one-off. Discover a country rich in history and culture, where one-third of people live as nomads, moving their traditional ger homes with the seasons. Witness an ancient way of life and enjoy stunning landscapes.

With 250 sunny days a year, it’s perfect for outdoor adventures. Attend the Naadam festival, a showcase of wrestling, horse racing, and archery. And don’t miss the world’s largest equestrian statue, a tribute to Genghis Khan.

Ulaanbaatar

Home to half of Mongolia’s population, the capital city of Ulaanbaatar is a fascinating blend of old and new. Located in north-central Mongolia, it is at a crossroad between it’s better known neighbours, China and Russia.

You will see skyscrapers and traditional tents side-by-side, workers in suits and monks in conversation, and surviving monasteries from pre-soviet occupation.

It is the world’s coldest capital city, but often reaches warm temperatures in the summer!

Food & Accommodation

Settle into your home away from home in Mongolia. We provide everything you need for a comfortable and enriching stay, including a clean bed, three meals a day, and access to clean drinking water. You’ll be welcomed into the home of a carefully vetted local family, hand-picked by Projects Abroad, who will introduce you to a brand new way of life.

Your host family’s house will be safe, secure, and clean, giving you somewhere to relax and rest with other Projects Abroad participants. Speak with your host family, share your culture, and experience theirs while enjoying delicious home-cooked food.

Transport to and from your placement is organised entirely by our team, so you’ll never need to stress about navigating somewhere you don’t know.

Your Arrival Made Easy

When you arrive at your respective airport, a member of Projects Abroad staff will be there to meet you. You can find more detailed information on arrival airports, orientation, and visas on our Mongolia Arrival Procedures page.