Copyright 2011 Katy Dickinson

Mentoring in medicine is important. Good mentoring helps premedical students envision themselves in the medical profession and learn from physicians or researchers. In medical school, mentors help students learn clinical medicine and focus on specialties of interest which they may want to pursue. Medical school applicants should be mindful of this as they select which medical school to attend once the application process is done. MentorCloud is a site on mentoring; you may want to explore it to learn more. Ask med students at the institutions you are considering whether good mentoring programs exist at those schools. Ask if they’ve had the opportunity to develop mentoring relationships with attending physicians. Ask if they’ve received guidance as to clerkships, rotations at other med schools, and specialty choice.

Various medical schools, such as Harvard , the University of Connecticut and Vanderbilt have specific programs for mentoring. The American Medical Student Association also has a mentoring program in place for medical students. Finally, the Association of American Medical Colleges offers tips for finding and working with a mentor.

–Liza Thompson, Expert Medical School Admissions Consulting

Originally posted in 2013 and updated in 2021.