As the College of Medicine continues to work to meet the needs of its students, the  COM Peer Advisor program has expanded its services and will continue to assist students in adjusting to the many pressures and stresses of medical education within a small group context. Peer Advisors provide a forum for first-year students to interact with a second-year student who can serve as a resource person, provide guidance and support, assist students in finding appropriate campus resources and are role models for  professional behavior. Peer Advisors may also informally assist students in subsequent years with adjustments to clinical experiences and clerkships.

NEW! for the 2019-2020 academic year, the COM Peer Advisor program has incorporated five student led executive committees, made up of student chairs and committee members. Each committee is charged with a responsibility to better assist and support students throughout all four years of their medical education.

Events/Planning Committee: Will recommend and plan peer advisor events; determine meeting format, mandatory or optional and frequency.

Social Media Committee: Will push content out to the students through the NEOMED Peer Advisor Instagram account (@neomedcompdat) with features, student spotlights, resources, and will assign regular student contributors.

Outreach Committee: Will create and recommend a peer advisor communication plan; determine an efficient way to communicate with other Peer Advisors and advisees in between meetings.

Program Evaluation Committee: Will create mid and end of the year peer advisor program evaluations to assess program effectiveness and determine recommendations for improvement.

Resource Committee: Will compile common peer advisor resources and recommend a platform for sharing those resources.

SESSIONS AND LUNCHES

Second-year Peer Advisors are required to host three peer advisor lunches throughout the academic year to “check in” with their first-year advisees. These lunches occur in the fall, winter and spring and serve as a platform for Peer Advisors to answer questions and offer advice to their advisees in the areas of study planning, exam preparation, time management, balancing extra-curricular activities, maintaining personal wellness, etc. View a listing of the Winter Peer Advisor Lunch dates for the upcoming months on Presence!

NEW! for 2019-2020, the COM Peer Advisor program has expanded its advising offerings! Based on student feedback, this student lead initiative in collaboration with the Events/Planning and Program Evaluation Executive Committees, has implemented M2/M3 in person peer advising sessions for the spring. These sessions offer second-year students the opportunity to meet with third-year Peer Advisors to gather advice on study habits for M2 year including Step 1 preparation and what to expect during third year clerkships. Once spring session dates are scheduled, they will be posted on Presence!

Questions about the COM Peer Advisor Program can be directed to Harmony Stanger, Assistant Director of Student Affairs in the College of Medicine, at hstanger@neomed.edu or 330-325-6719.