The Right Thing to Do, The Smart Thing to Do Enhancing Diversity in the Health Professions -- Summary of the Symposium on Diversity in Health Professions in Honor of Herbert W. Nickens, M.D. (2001) / Chapter Skim
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Sustaining Minorities in Prehealth Advising Programs: Challenges and Strategies for Success
Sustaining Minorities in Prehealth Advising Programs: Challenges and Strategies for Success
Pages 281-304
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From page 281... ...
Therefore, it is imperative that undergraduate institutions provide the programmatic and personal support necessary to ensure the persistence of minority students to the baccalaureate. With respect to the health professions, effective undergraduate prehealth advising 281
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From page 282... ...
It is difficult to know the number of students who were not able to overcome this discouragement. A survey of minority students attending a Student National Medical Association conference was designed to provide a data-based analysis of student perceptions of the undergraduate prehealth advising programs at their home institutions.
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From page 283... ...
Without question, effective prehealth advising is important to the successful advancement of all students to health professions schools. However, it is especially critical to the success of minority students.
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From page 284... ...
In honoring Cecilia Fox at the AAMC Annual Meeting in 2000, the MAS acknowledged the importance of prehealth advising to the success of minority students interested in careers in the health professions. Fox exemplifies a prehealth advisor at a small institution who has been especially effective.
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From page 285... ...
In response to concerns about the quality of prehealth advising for minority students, the NAAHP Board of Directors recently formed a Committee on Minority Affairs charged with developing programs for enhancing prehealth advising of underrepresented minority students. The committee has identified a range of issues which must be addressed.
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From page 286... ...
The ability of advisors to advise minority students effectively can be enhanced by a better understanding of the factors affecting their achievement and persistence to the baccalaureate. Understanding the challenges faced by underrepresented minorities and implementing the strategies demonstrated to lead to a successful transition of minority students to health professions schools are essential to effective advising programs.
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From page 287... ...
This relationship existed for all students, regardless of race/ethnicity, demonstrating that underrepresented minority students can succeed, given high-quality preparation in high school. Unfortunately, minority students are less likely to attend schools that offer advanced math courses that will increase the probability of their earning bachelor's degrees (Adelman, 1999~.
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From page 288... ...
The number of students in this pool is very high, yet formal prehealth advising programs are typically absent from 2-year institutions. Over 40% of AfricanAmerican students (46% in 1996)
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From page 289... ...
For American Indian/Alaska Natives, the top five were the University of Oklahoma-Norman, Pembroke State University, UC-Berkeley, UC-Davis, and the University of Norm Dakota-Main Campus, respectively. An assessment of the prehealth advising programs at these and other institutions sending large numbers of underrepresented minorities to health professions schools would provide useful information for developing and disseminating effective strategies for advising minority students.
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From page 290... ...
There was also a notable difference in course content. Science faculty at four of the five institutions with higher acceptance rates did not tailor their courses specifically for premedical students; however, faculty at the lower acceptance rate institutions tended to tailor their curricula to the needs of premedical students, with some gearing their courses to the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT)
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From page 291... ...
at the institutions with higher acceptance rates, with an average of only 5°/O at the institutions with lower acceptance rates. These f~ndings reflect the recurring theme that resources enhance the quality of prehealth advising programs and also suggest that students benefit from having a community of students with common interests.
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From page 292... ...
Xavier University of Louisiana Xavier University of Louisiana's success as a source of black applicants to health professions schools deserves a closer look. Xavier, the only historically black Catholic university in the country, has an exemplary premedical advising program that has received national attention.
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From page 293... ...
A feature at Xavier uncommon to most prehealth advising programs is parental involvement. Parents are informed of what their children should be doing at each step of the preparation process.
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From page 294... ...
The programs and students studied by Gandara and Bowen and Bok have relevance for all prehealth advisors, but particularly those at selective majority institutions. Underrepresented minority students at majority colleges and universities generally do not earn grades that are as high as the grades of white and Asian students with similar high school GPAs and SAT scores (Steele, 1997; Bowen & Bok, 1998; CB, 1999~.
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From page 295... ...
To be effective, prehealth advisors must also consider these factors when designing programs to assist minority students in preparing for health profession schools. SURVEY OF STUDENT OPINION Understanding student perceptions of their prehealth advising programs must be a part of the effort to improve prehealth advising programs.
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From page 296... ...
The purpose of the survey was to reconcile the analysis of prehealth advising programs with the perceptions of minority undergraduate prehealth/premedical students. It is a small step toward providing more than anecdotal evidence about the quality of prehealth advising for minority students.
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From page 297... ...
The increase in excellent ratings between this question and the question about advising programs may be an indication that students found specific advising programs or activities lacking, but found personal attention from advisors more beneficial. Another item on the survey asked students to rate specific programs tailored to the needs of minority students.
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From page 298... ...
Some may not decide until after their sophomore year. Nevertheless, this may limit the impact of prehealth advising, as there is evidence supporting the importance of early identification and support in ensuring high academic achievement by minority students (Gandara, 1999~.
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From page 299... ...
It is essential that all prehealth advisors be well informed about the admissions profiles of competitive minority matriculants to all health professions schools. Often advisors are fearful that poor grades in the freshman year are a forecast of failure, and believe that they are acting in the student's best interest when they counsel them out of prehealth advising programs in their freshman year.
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From page 300... ...
Nickens, M.D. One important recommendation from the workshop is that minority high school students interested in careers in the health professions should consider the quality of the prehealth advising program for minority students when selecting a college or university.
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From page 301... ...
Prehealth advising programs can assist by offering appropriate co-curricular programming, promoting the formation of student groups focused on the health professions, and providing opportunities for students to work one-on-one with faculty. Building a Critical Mass Finding ways to build a critical mass of minority prehealth students may involve establishing partnerships among small colleges and encouraging students to form student organizations that focus on minority students interested in the health professions.
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From page 302... ...
These programs are typically 1-year programs. The Application Process Effective prehealth advising programs give students very specific guidelines on a 4-year time line for preparing for admission to health professions schools.
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From page 303... ...
Given that many minority students are first-generation college students and that most are first-generation health professions students, they may not have a family network of academic support and advice. The advice must come from the prehealth advising program or from the academic advisor.
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From page 304... ...
(1999~. Priming the pump: Strategies for increasing the achievement of underrepresented minority undergraduates.
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