Diversity Mentorship program: Information for medical students

First- through fourth-year medical students who are considered to be underrepresented in medicine* may apply to participate in the American Academy of Dermatology’s Diversity Mentorship program. This unique program offers hands-on exposure to students who are interested in learning more about dermatology as a medical specialty through a one-on-one mentorship experience with a dermatologist of the student's choice.

Watch this video to learn more about diversity mentorship at the Academy.

Students who shadow a mentor oftentimes develop professional relationships that follow the students through their residency and into key junctures in their career.

A lack of ethnic diversity exists among Dermatology’s current physician population. This impacts ethnic minority patients as they may seek medical care less frequently or when it is too late. As our population continues to grow, diversifying our physician population of dermatologists will bring a unique perspective to the field and encourage patients to seek care more regularly.

The mentorship encompasses 160 hours during the course of one month. Medical students commonly participate in this program in the summer months, but it must be complete by Dec. 1, 2012. The mentorship may be completed in a choice of environments such as a medical center, private practice, etc.

Upon application to the program, a medical student may choose a mentor on his or her own, or he or she can choose from a list of mentors that the Academy maintains. Each medical student who is selected to participate in the Diversity Mentorship program will receive a $1,500 stipend to help cover the cost of travel, housing and meals during the mentorship.

The American Academy of Dermatology’s Diversity Mentorship Program is available to first- through fourth-year medical students who are underrepresented in medicine. The Academy recognizes the following racial groups as underrepresented in the field of Dermatology (as related to the US population): African American, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander. An applicant must be a U.S. citizen or have a permanent resident visa.

Your mentor must be selected prior to submitting your application. To begin your search, we suggest contacting dermatologists at your university or within your community. The Academy also has a listing of eligible mentors in our online search database (please select the Diversity Mentorship Program in the 'Mentor Program" field). Please note, mentors must be members of the Academy to be considered for the program.

Upon completion of your mentorship (by Dec. 1 of the year in which you receive the award), you are required to submit an evaluation of the program and a brief description of your future plans to pursue dermatology.

Below are the recipients of the 2012 Diversity Mentorship Program.

Annalise Abiodun: MS2, University of Utah School of Medicine
Ezihe Ihunnaya Agwu: MS2, Stony Brook School of Medicine
Mashal Akhter: MS1, Northeast Ohio Medical University
Luis Barraza: MS1, New York University School of Medicine
Rima Chakraborty: MS2, University of Missouri-School of Medicine
Jennifer Ezirike: MS3, Morehouse School of Medicine
Valerie Fisher: MS1, University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio
Gianfranco Frojo: MS1, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Lu Guo: MS1, Michigan State College of Human Medicine
Marius (Lawrence) Haiducu: MS2, University of British Columbia
Sharon Kim: MS3, Baylor College of Medicine
Jenna Lester: MS2, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
Iviensan Manalo: MS1, Medical College of Georgia (at Georgia Health Sciences University)
Sultan Mirzoyev: MS2, Mayo Medical School
Jean-Phillip Okhovat: MS2, UCR/UCLA
Jennifer Ornelas: MS1, UC Davis School of Medicine
Osamuede Osemwota: MS3, University of Alabama SOM at Birmingham
Amee Patel: MS1, Rush Medical College
Andrew Rivera: MS1, Harvard Medical School
Roxana Rodriguez: MS2, A.T. Still University
Ami Saraiya: MS3, Northeast Ohio Medical University
Yolandas Thomason: MS1, LMU-DCOM
Behzad Toosi: MS4, University of British Columbia
Rex Ugorji: MS3, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Courtney Weathersby: MS3, University of Virginia School of Medicine
Charlene Wiggins: MS3, American University of Antigua
Huayi Zhang: MS3, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria
Xi Zhu: MS1, Ohio State University College of Medicine

The online application for 2013 is now open!

Contact: Nikki Haton, administrative assistant, Member Services
Phone: (847) 240-1350
Fax: (847) 240-1920
Email: nhaton@aad.org
Application: https://www.aad.org/apps/mentorship/student/default.aspx
Deadline: Thursday, January 31, 2013
Applicant notified of status: April 30, 2013

Required documents for the application:

A copy of your résumé or curriculum vitae.
A copy of your medical school transcript. First-year students may submit a list of current classes.
Two professional letters of recommendation.

Please visit our frequently asked questions page for more information about the program.

*The Academy recognizes the following racial groups as underrepresented in the field of Dermatology (as related to the US population): African American, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.