Starting medical school is a major transition for students. They must adapt to a new environment and begin to think, act, and feel like a physician, a transformative process known as Professional Identity Formation (PIF). Getting students to meaningfully think about PIF in the early years of medical school is challenging as the curricular demands are high. In this focus session, we will discuss the concept of PIF and tools such as the Professional Identity Essay (PIE) and how PIF can be developed prior to starting medical school in postbaccalaureate premedical (PBPM) programs. Participants will engage with presenters who are actively doing PIF research and have a chance to hear from students about to start medical school who completed PBPM program. They will share their experiences taking the PIE and receiving feedback on their reflections. The session will be interactive and provide opportunities to engage in discussions with the presenters and other audience members.

Professional identity formation (PIF) in healthcare is defined most simply as “...the process through which a student transforms into a physician (or healthcare provider)”. Constructive developmental theory of adult professional identity formation provides a framework to understand PIF over time and suggests that identity development is a longitudinal process which begins before entering professional school and continues throughout professional life. Indeed, previous studies suggest that entering medical students have already begun to form professional identities, and that humanities curricula and reflective writing may enhance identity formation in premedical students. This process, which we refer to as pre-PIF, is important to define in postbaccalaureate premedical (PBPM) students, as a growing number of entering medical students have completed PBPM programs. However, the foundational characteristics and variables contributing to pre-PIF remain unknown.

PBPM students are a growing percentage of our healthcare workforce. PBPM programs can enhance readiness for medical school for premedical students and incoming medical students, respectively. The number of PBPM students entering medical school has increased dramatically in the last 15 years, and over 30 U.S. medical schools report utilizing the PM program to support incoming medical students. Lessons learned from PBPMs can be readily applied to support entering medical students transition into medical school. Therefore, we have begun to investigate pre-PIF in PBPM programs and identify themes that promote pre-PIF. 

In this session, using perspectives from students about to enter medical school who have successfully completed PBPM programs and our research findings, we will address how pre-PIF can help us better guide premedical learners to stronger career fits, support medical school admissions in applicant evaluation, and foster and accelerate PIF in medical students to develop flourishing physicians. 

Learning Outcomes

1. Explain the process of professional identity formation (PIF)
2. Describe the professional identity essay (PIE) and how different medical schools use the PIE to measure PIF
3. Summarize themes that promote PIF before medical school in postbaccalaureate premedical programs
4. Discuss the benefits of the PIE for students application to medical school
5. Describe curricular and co-curricular approaches that reinforce PIF
6. Incorporate PIF into their curriculum