Programs

Urban Bridges Medical Mentoring Physician Pipeline Program

I Am Abel

The Urban Bridges Medical Mentoring Program has numerous activities, series, and sub-programs that are tremendously helpful in developing both the technical knowledge and interpersonal skills vital to our students’ success

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Program Components

Primary Areas of Focus
  • Recruitment (i.e. increasing awareness of and/or stimulating interest in health profession careers and degree programs
  • Academic preparation (e.g., increasing STEM knowledge

Program Components
  • Academic skills development (e.g. study skills, test-taking
    First year students in the Urban Bridges Medical Mentoring Program will participate in the Intro to History Taking and The Patient lecture series where they will learn how to do a complete patient history and will be introduced to critical first steps in the physical exam. This curriculum is foundational to the mentoring program and provides the substantive learning experience that makes the mentoring program complete. Saturday Morning Professor is therefore a requirement for those that choose the mentoring experienc
  • Academic support (e.g. tutoring, progress monitoring)
    Saturday Morning Professor The Saturday Morning Professor Lecture Series is a monthly seminar, occurring every third Saturday, taught by the best and brightest physicians in the Chicagoland area from major academic centers like Northwestern, Rush, University of Illinois and more. They will immerse students in the field medicine through case-based learning which is highly effective and incredibly interesting. The learning is highly interactive and hands-on. Teaching is both didactic and in small group settings. This blended approach is highly effective.
  • Mentoring (e.g. pairing with current health profession student)
    One on One Physician Mentoring The One-on-One Mentoring component of the Urban Bridges Medical Mentoring Program is essential for the simple reason that students must “see it to be it”. Partnering students with physician and medical student mentors puts a real, personal face to medicine and allows each student to build a connection with their physician mentor, broaden their network, and in many cases, shadow their mentor in a clinical environment.
  • Networking (with others who have similar health career interests)
    Small Mentoring Circles One of the latest additions to the UBMM Program is the commencement of our Physician and Medical Student Lead Mentoring Circles Students will have the opportunity to attend mostly physician led, small group mentoring sessions that cover a multitude of topics including an empathy series, MCAT bootcamp, self-care and mental health workshop, etc. Mentoring Circles allow students to improve their emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills through team building and small group exercises. It’s fun and low pressure. Unlike Saturday Morning Professor, it is also optional. I’m sure you will find several mentoring circles you’d like to join.
  • Research experience (e.g. summer program)

Program Information

Education Levels
Health Professions

Program Sustainability

Affiliated Programs

Northwestern Medicine University of Chicago

Eligibility Criteria and How to Apply

Eligibility Criteria
  • Academic

Program Costs

The value of the mentoring program is $5-7K annually depending on level of participation but is provided to our scholars free of charge primarily due to the generous support and countless volunteer hours of our physician leadership and volunteer staff.

Financial Assistance

Contact Information

I Am Abel Foundation
Email: info@iamabel.org
Phone: Tel: 866-600-6959

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