YouthCHAT Actor (# 376540)

The University of Minnesota is hiring YouthCHAT Actors for their Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health, based in the Twin Cities, MN. This role sits within a simulated patient training program, where performers portray adolescent and young adult patient characters in clinical interview sessions with medical and nursing trainees. It suits performers with an interest in applied theater, peer education, or health advocacy work who are comfortable drawing on personal experience to shape a recurring character.

About the Role

YouthCHAT Actors work inside a healthcare training production context, developing original patient characters in collaboration with faculty and delivering those portrayals in virtual and in-person sessions with clinical trainees one to two times per month. The role carries a dual function, with roughly half the time spent on performance work and the other half on advisory contributions to adolescent health research and programming. A typical week might include a Friday morning session via Zoom, followed by written feedback notes on trainee performance and prep work for an upcoming Youth Advisory Board meeting.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and refine an original adolescent patient character in collaboration with YouthCHAT faculty, adjusting the portrayal over time based on program feedback and training goals.
• Perform in one to two simulated clinical interview sessions per month, each up to two hours, with medical, nursing, or other clinical trainees in virtual or in-person formats.
• Deliver specific, constructive performance feedback to trainees immediately following sessions, focused on communication style and clinical interview technique.
• Attend monthly two-hour Youth Advisory Board meetings to review adolescent health research projects and provide input to Division staff and faculty.
• Participate in orientation and ongoing training sessions designed to build the skills needed to support healthcare professional development through applied performance work.
• Track hours accurately, complete required University of Minnesota staff training, and respond promptly to scheduling requests from program staff.

What You Bring

• High school diploma or equivalent is required.
• Prior experience in acting, peer teaching, group facilitation, or simulated patient work is preferred.
• Comfort discussing sensitive health topics including sexual health, mental health, and substance use in a professional training context.
• Working familiarity with Google Drive, Microsoft Word, and Zoom for remote session delivery.
• Ability to portray the voice and perspective of young people ages 16 to 24 with authenticity and specificity.
• Organized, detail-oriented, and able to manage a recurring part-time schedule independently.

Why This Role

The University of Minnesota’s Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health runs a well-established training program that gives performers real, recurring work in the applied theater and simulated patient space, a growing area within healthcare education production. The advisory component means YouthCHAT Actors contribute meaningfully to research on topics including LGBTQIA health care, justice-involved youth, and gender and sexual health, not just to individual training sessions. For performers interested in purpose-driven work that builds both performance credits and health advocacy experience, this is a substantive part-time position with structured support from program faculty.

Apply now for the YouthCHAT Actor role at the University of Minnesota and bring your performance skills into a healthcare training environment that values lived experience as much as craft.