04.09.07

The UCSF School of Medicine offers a wealth of educational resources for its faculty, staff, and students, but some of our unique opportunities fly under the campus radar. The nine-year-old post baccalaureate program which helps prepare a group of approximately 15 students each year to apply for medical school, is one such overlooked gem.

"We're very proud to be celebrating nearly a decade of assisting students who are California residents and who come to us from a variety of backgrounds," says Valerie Margol, associate director of the School of Medicine's Outreach and Academic Advancement program.

Students who apply and are admitted to the one-year program are typically from underserved communities, including low-income backgrounds, populations traditionally underserved in medicine, and immigrants. All students who begin the program have completed their pre-med courses. "Our program provides assistance in how to apply to medical school, including writing essays, taking the MCAT, having a successful interview, and negotiating a rather complicated system," Valerie Margol explains.

Yessenia Rivera came to the program because, as she says, "I had no idea how to apply to medical school. From the very start, everyone here was so supportive that I felt my dream to become a family and community doctor would come true." Yessenia is currently completing her third year at the UCSF School of Medicine.

Approximately half of the post baccalaureate students come to the program after unsuccessfully applying to medical school, while the others have yet to apply. Since the program's inception, 94 percent of those completing it have gone on to matriculate at medical schools in the US. Currently, 57 percent are enrolled in California medical schools, 48 percent at the University of California.


Helping Disadvantaged Students to Succeed

After the passage of Proposition 209 in 1996, which eliminated affirmative action programs in California, the University of California system experienced a significant decline in minority student enrollment. Administrators became concerned about reaching underrepresented and underserved populations. The post bac programs were created on several campuses to reconcile some of the disparities.

"Many of our students are the first in their families to attend college, and few had academic role models and mentors," says Valerie Margol. "One goal of this program is to provide the resources that our students lacked as undergraduates to enable them to realize their dreams of attending medical school."

Students in the post bac program take classes at San Francisco State to boost their academic profile, and they participate in seminars on the UCSF campus to increase their knowledge of health care in underserved communities.

Because the group is small, advisors are able to help customize individual participants' schedules to their specific needs. "We spend a lot of one-on-one time with each person and provide them with the tools that will, ideally, ensure their success," Valerie Margol explains.

Relationships created between the students and advisors often last beyond the year spent together. Students are asked to send a follow up of their activities annually, and many enjoy touching base with the program that helped them realize their goals.

Source: Elizabeth Ferber