April marks the arrival of the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions (NAAHP) Regional Meetings, which are held on alternating years with the national meeting. While I know that many of you attended the national advisors’ meeting last June in Baltimore, I would also encourage you to attend the upcoming meeting in your region if the opportunity is available. In my experience, these advisor meetings offer several benefits that make them well worth the effort.
First, they give you another chance to hear directly from representatives of the AAMC, AACOM, ADEA, AACP, and other professional organizations about developing trends in admissions and education; with MCAT2015 rapidly approaching and questions swirling about the nature of prerequisite coursework for pre-health students, it’s certainly to your advantage to get as much information as possible directly from the source.
Additionally, a highlight of any advisor meeting is the Meet the Deans fair, in which you can connect one-on-one with representatives from the varying schools where your students are currently applying. Many advisors have told me that the relationships they build at these meetings allow them to more effectively advocate for their students when the need arises – after all, a letter of recommendation carries that much more weight when you know the individual behind the signature.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the regional advisor meetings allow you to connect with your fellow advisors in a more intimate environment, without the hustle and bustle of the national meeting. Because of their size and scope, these smaller meetings are by design the perfect opportunity to discuss the local scale and address issues that are endemic to your region.
The full schedule of upcoming meetings is listed below; you can also find details on each meeting, including instructions for registering, here.
· SAAHP Regional Meeting: April 4-7, Louisville, KY
· NEAAHP Regional Meeting: April 11-14, Atlantic City, NJ
· CAAHP Regional Meeting: April 18-21, Detroit, MI
· WAAHP Regional Meeting: May 3-7, Newport Beach, CA
Of course the Kaplan team and I will also be attending each of these meetings, and will have plenty of developments and resources to share with you. Hope to see you there!
