Deep Explore Abstract

Title: Prime Time: Outcomes of a Mentorship Program for Underrepresented Pre- Medical Students from the California San Joaquin Valley (SJV)

Authors: Charis Turner, Denalene Tiu, Seshaan Ratnam, Amritpal Singh, Vanessa Mora, Mina Sarofim, Mandeep Kaur, Neytali Kanwar, Jagjot Dosanjoh, Myrka Macedo, Rojina Nekoonam, Rob Rodriguez, MD

Purpose: To elicit perspectives from underserved pre-medical students about barriers faced while applying to medical school and to assess the impact of a near-peer mentorship program.

Methods: Anonymous, mixed-methods surveys were administered to pre-medical students before and after the Prime Time pre-medical mentorship program between March – April 2023. Surveys included a medical school application knowledge quiz and a set of statements which students rated their agreement with on a scale of 0-100. Wilcoxon rank-sum tests were used to compare before- and after- median ratings and knowledge quiz scores. Thematic analysis was used to elicit themes from free- response questions.

Results: Of 79 invited students, 67 completed the pre-survey and 46 completed the post-survey. 66% identified as underrepresented in medicine, 42% were Hispanic/Latinx, and 75% came from families in the lowest three quartiles for income. Students identified lack of mentorship, few clinical and research opportunities, underrepresentation in medicine, and high financial costs as barriers. After near-peer mentorship, pre-medical students had higher confidence in understanding the steps to apply to medical school (p < 0.001); feeling prepared to apply (p = 0.005), knowing how to write a personal statement (p < 0.001), how to present themselves in an interview (p < 0.001); and how to reach out to mentors for help (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Near-peer mentorship is a low-cost and effective intervention to increase pre-medical students’ knowledge of and preparedness for the medical school application process.