Nurse Externship, Research Fellowship Provide Head Start For New Nurse’s Career Development

Christopher Wickenheiser, RN, might be fresh out of nursing school but he already has landed his dream job as an intensive care unit (ICU) nurse. 

After participating in Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN)’s Research Scholar and Nurse Extern programs, he accepted a position in the ICU where he completed his externship. He’s also well positioned to explore other nursing opportunities later in his career.

Wickenheiser was a research scholar between his sophomore and junior years of nursing school. The eight-week program provides structured educational research opportunities for undergraduate students.

Between his junior and senior years, Wickenheiser was a nurse extern. It’s a paid educational position that offers hands-on training with experienced registered nurses.

Offered by LVHN, part of Jefferson Health, these education programs play a vital role in workforce development. They demonstrate the health system’s ongoing investment in preparing the next generation of healthcare professionals and ensuring access to high-quality care throughout the region. 

“The extra education opportunities that LVHN offers are amazing, really,” Wickenheiser says. “I would not have gotten this experience anywhere else.”

His nursing degree is from the University of Pittsburgh, but the Emmaus resident preferred the professional training opportunities offered by LVHN over anything he could have found at college, he says.

“As a research scholar, I got a great foundation in research, learned the terminology and best practices and had opportunities most nurses don’t get,” he says. These opportunities included observing surgeries and being paired with a top physician on a research project.

“Being a nurse extern in the ICU at Lehigh Valley Hospital–Cedar Crest was one of the best learning tools I could have had,” Wickenheiser says. “By the end of the summer, I was already taking on more responsibility and developing confidence.”

He credits his externship for his job offer — shortly after graduation — to return to the same floor as an ICU nurse. “I love this floor,” he says. “And it’s not easy to get a job in the ICU right out of school.

“I’d recommend an externship to any nurse in training who wants to have an advantage when they return to school, and when they start looking for a job.”

In terms of career goals, Wickenheiser, 24, says he sees all kinds of possibilities. “Right now, my goal is to be the best ICU nurse I can be,” he says.

But after a while, Wickenheiser says he may be interested in other nursing specialties such as nurse practitioner, or in an advanced degree such as certified registered nurse practitioner. “If I decide to try for one of those,” he says, “I know my experience as a research scholar and nurse extern will be a big help.” 

LVHN’s Research Scholar and Nurse Extern programs provide opportunities for nursing students to gain hands-on clinical experience, build confidence and explore career paths before graduation.