The Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP) is a six-week program that supports 80 pre-health scholars interested in dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, and medicine. The primary goal of SHPEP is to strengthen the academic proficiency and career development of students underrepresented in the health professions, and prepare them for a successful application and matriculation to health professions schools. The Student Development Assistants play a vital role in helping to obtain the aforementioned goals, and the overall success and support of the program and participants.


Student Development Assistants must be willing to serve as a role model, mentor, and advisor to student participants. The Summer Health Professions Education Program is typically a six- week in person experience where all participants and Student Development Assistants live on campus. However, due to COVID 19, SHPEP 2021 will be delivered completely virtual for the second summer. Although we will miss having everyone in person this year, our number one priority will always be the safety of students, faculty, and staff while protecting the integrity and impact of the program. Since the program is virtual, the Student Development Assistant (SDA) position becomes even more imperative to helping to support, encourage, and develop the next generation of future health professionals. If selected to serve in the Student Development Assistant (SDA) role, individuals can anticipate the following primary duties:


Supervision and Communication
• Serve as the first point of contact for participants. This means help manage scholar GroupMe, help disseminate information, assist with getting scholars connected to the correct resources, etc.
• Track scholar participation during live online sessions, completion of asynchronous sessions, and small group work.
• Assist scholars with course content, technical challenges, and responding to scholar requests.

Mentorship
• Support and foster relationships between scholars within the cohort and the SDA team.
• Help supervise, tutor, and mentor a group of ten scholars through the cluster system.
• Be willing to talk about your journey to your health professional school.
• Attend all programmatic components.
• Serve as tutors. Participants will have time set aside to study as a group; your job is to make sure that they understand the information.  (This is why it is critical for you to attend class.)

Programming
• Plan social activities for participants, and lead two small group activities per week.
• Have icebreakers or activities ready when presenters cancel or running late
• Suggest and assist with optional programming initiatives (i.e. mock interviews, volunteer opportunities, study session etc).

Other Duties as Assigned:
•  Monitor participants and their overall well-being and communicate with the SHPEP Leadership team if there are issues that arise.
• Assist with orientation activities, and course content
• Help support scholars in their engagement in the program.
• Any other duties the SHPEP Leadership team deems would be beneficial to add to help with the impact and integrity of the program.

Required Experience to Apply
 
- Must be entering or attending a health professional school (i.e. dentistry, medicine, nursing, and pharmacy) and/or taking a gap with the intention of attending health professional school.
- Able to support the program for the full 6 weeks
- Enthusiast about mentoring and supporting scholars and the SHPEP Program

Preferred Experience (application will still be considered if you do not have these requirements)

- Entering or finishing first year of health professional school
- Participant of a summer pipeline program (i.e. SHPEP/SMDEP, MCAT-DAT, PEPP, Gear Up, etc.)
- Identify as underrepresented in health professional field (i.e race/ethnicity, economic/educationally disadvantaged background, and/or an interest in issues affecting underserved populations.