HIT Professional Practice Experience (PPE)/Internships

Health Information Technology (HIT) PPE/Internships

The Professional Practice Experience (PPE) is an 80 hour, applied, culminating experience in which the student observes and participates in HIM department functions and/or assumes responsibility for a special project as a Health Information professional. The PPE is designed to provide students with practical experience in the Health Information competencies and domains that focus on skill building and practical application of theory.

The PPE is a credit-based course, which applies toward degree completion, and requires tuition, fees, and costs as normally occurs according to institutional policy. This supervised PPE can take place through the Health Information department of a hospital, a non-acute healthcare facility, a government agency, an insurance company, a software vendor, or other non-traditional healthcare organizations. Students will work under the supervision of a qualified HIM or other healthcare professional.

The PPE is an experience, of which there may be several ways to gain this experience. While some experiences may include virtual options, at least a portion of the PPE just be a field-based (in-person) practicum.  

A contractual arrangement between the college and the healthcare organization must be in place before a student can begin a PPE/Internship. The program reserves the right to evaluate the appropriateness of a PPE site to ensure students are placed into a secure and productive environment that furthers their education.

Information for Students

Information for Employers: Becoming an Internship Site

If your organization would like to be an internship site, please email us at daubrey@tacomacc.edu. Participating sites are compensated with up to 5 AHIMA-approved Continuing Education Units (CEUs) per year for credentialed staff who mentor students and one free admission to the Annual HIM Spring Leadership Conference at TCC.