On April 2, a group of PV students participated in a “mini-medical school” at the University of Iowa’s Roy J. & Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine.
The students had the opportunity to talk to an admissions officer, a resident, and current medical school students.
The admissions officer gave the students insight into what they should be doing in high school to start building their medical school application.
Next, they spoke with an internal specialist resident who graduated from the medical school at the University of Iowa. She talked about her path of applying to and graduating from medical school. She also gave the students a unique perspective of what it was like to go through the medical school and residency application process.
The final activity of the day was a case-based learning activity where the students got to look at a case study and diagnose the pretend patient using the information that was given. This gave the participants a real-life simulation of the tasks doctors must perform everyday.
Sophomore Alex Clemons described his experience in Iowa City. “It was valuable and fun because it gave me new insight into the experience of people who have gone through medical school. Also, we got to learn things from past and present medical school students like how the MCAT is 7 to 8 hours long and how it’s super important for people to do research and to volunteer to get into medical school,” Clemons said.
The mini-medical school is one of the many and ever-expanding opportunities PVHS provides to help students get a head start in their desired field of work. Some of the things in which students can participate are lunch and learns, job fairs, and job shadows.
The coordinator of the Career Center, Mary Johnson, talked about why students should participate in learning-activities offered by the Career Center. “Job shadows and the other opportunities we provide here gives students an idea of what they can do in their careers. It gives them the opportunity to connect with professionals and learn about other careers they might not have thought of.”
