Introduction:

Tertiary education is challenged to train health professionals qualified to act as proactive agents of change. Participation in social projects is a strategy to integrate interprofessional education into its competences.

Objective:

To understand the experiences of the students who participate in social development projects, within the framework of interprofessional education.

Methods:

Qualitative study with a phenomenological approach. The sample was obtained by theoretical saturation, made up of 11 students who participated in social development projects. The data collection was carried out with an in-depth interview with the students who gave their informed consent. Colaizzi's phenomenological analysis was used, and meanings, categories and subcategories were identified.

Results:

From the analysis of the discourses, four categories emerged: teamwork, interprofessional collaboration, decision making and conflict resolution, acquisition of new knowledge and skills.

Conclusions:

The participating students strengthened teamwork, as they knew their role better. Interprofessional communication was the basis to consolidate their participation in leadership roles and allowed them to visualize their subsequent actions as health professionals in the search for patient-centered care with collaborative practice. Before the difficulties that appeared, they learned to make team decisions to resolve conflicts through the recognition of lines of authority. They have acquired new knowledge and skills, which makes their training more solid by assuming a commitment to society and to provide quality patient-centered care interprofessionally.

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