Presented By: Megan Lander, California University of Science and Medicine
Co-Authors: Skye Lander, California University of Science and Medicine
Helena Spartz, California University of Science and Medicine

Purpose 
Due to the transition of USMLE Step 1 to a P/F scoring system, students can increase engagement in novel opportunities to advance their professional development. At CUSM, structured experiences in healthcare and community wellness have been developed. Students were empowered to craft programs alongside faculty to gain curriculum development proficiency as educators. This program example highlights Rural Health Scholars (RHS), a student-created program aimed at tackling the discrepancy of care and physician shortage in rural populations. 

Methods 
RHS and other programs were constructed by a student and a faculty member around three main tenets: 1) Education in clinical practice sensitive to the culture and healthcare needs of rural communities, 2) Practical experience is gained through an eight-week experience in the different departments of a rural hospital in Kayenta, AZ, and 3) Capstone as an individualized scholarly project reflecting the culmination of student education and experience. Each of these tenets is evaluated, facilitated, and approved by the program faculty lead. The faculty lead supervises students throughout this longitudinal experience. 

Results 
After RHS's first year, all students have reported growth in their confidence in clinical medicine and understanding of the socioeconomic and cultural diversity of rural communities. Students have demonstrated unique capstone projects exhibiting personalization to their experience including community education workshops, rural community health programs, and education at conferences and medical schools. Faculty guide and enhance these achievements with program-specific outcomes. The primary challenge is tracking program and student progress. Solutions include harnessing the Learning Management System for increased ease of tracking conducted through faculty workshops. 

Conclusions 
Medical institutions and their faculty should consider developing similarly structured scholar programs with the aid of their students keen on exploring their zeal for education. Furthermore, students enrolled in these programs benefit from distinguishing experiences and report multifaceted professional growth and development.