Diversity Hub

We in the department of Neurosurgery are working in partnership with the non-profit organization Oasis for Girls to offer paid internship programs for underserved high school female youth of color (ages 14-18) to expose them to medical and healthcare professional careers with mentorship, career path exploration, and professional development through hospital rotations in labs, the OR, and other academic or healthcare locations, with research projects, presentations, and interactive activities. We accept a group of 15-18 youth per cycle with 3 application / intern cycles per year. We are expanding our programs to reach other demographics (e.g. young Black males, LGBTQ+ youth, college pre-med students). Altogether these programs are housed under the title Neurosurgery Community Internship Programs (NCIP).

RIDR is a research and academic career development program funded by the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging and developed by the department's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee. We provide unique research experiences and focused mentorship to students from diverse backgrounds. Our goal is to provide an early opportunity for students to explore radiology as a career choice and support the next wave of innovation in our field.

PITCH is a FREE opportunity for incoming high school juniors, particularly those who may be the first in their families to pursue a four-year college degree, to spend three weeks at UCSF, exploring careers in healthcare, and looking into the educational pathways that lead to different careers, and learning professional skills that will help them along the way. PITCH students are mentored by current UCSF students in the Graduate Division, dental school, pharmacy school, medical school, and nursing school as they complete a group research project and receive one-on-one and small group academic advising from EAOP counselors. PITCH has three core components: (1) Exposure to Careers in Health - presented through a combination of hands-on workshops or guest lectures, led by UCSF students, faculty and staff; (2) College Awareness - Assists students to better understanding the college search and application process; and (3) Group Work on a Research Project - PITCH students research a specific disease, which allows them to develop an understanding for the roles of the various health professionals treating the disease.

Each June, the Early Academic Outreach Program supports UCSF students in holding a one-week free summer day camp at the Parnassus campus for rising fifth- and sixth-grade students. Summer Science Camp was established by UCSF School of Pharmacy student Heather Hertema in 2007 to excite, motivate, and inspire youth, especially those who are underrepresented and underserved in natural and health sciences to pursue the natural and health sciences both in college and as a career. Each year, the camp affords up to 55 students the opportunity to experience hands-on, inquiry-based science. The camp also promotes positive interaction with professional students, campus scientists, and health professionals who serve as role models.

Our mission is to provide access to quality health care for underserved people of California. This is accomplished by linking academic training programs with training sites in urban and rural underserved areas of the state such as community clinics and health centers, hospitals and other community based sites. The California AHEC has 13 centers, each responsible for a geographic service area in an urban or rural part of the state. Each center develops its own programs based on the needs of their service area and include continuing education for health professionals and staff working in underserved communities; rotations and other community experiences for health professions students and residents and youth health careers programs for underrepresented minority and other disadvantaged K-14 students. Each of these programs seeks to train future HPs, recruit and retain health professionals for community clinics and health centers and other types of sites that provide medical/dental and behavioral health services to the underserved populations of CA.

UCSF volunteers partner with K-12 teachers to co-plan and co-teach a series of science lessons.

Twenty high school students come to UCSF each summer to conduct biomedical research under the guidance of a scientist mentor. Program received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring in 2011. This program is currently funded by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Silicon Valley Community Foundation, and the Baskin Family Foundation.

SUHLA is a summer academy for rising 11th graders participating in the FACES for the Future-SF program at the O'Connell High School Health & Science Lab. SUHLA participants will learn key concepts of community health, social justice, advocacy, and social determinants of health through the lens of health and human rights, especially as it relates to the SF Mission District. We are recruiting graduate students in the fields of dentistry, medicine, nursing and pharmacy as SUHLA Fellows. The SUHLA Fellowship is a total of 6 weeks during the summer. This begins with a primer session before the summer academy, where Fellows receive training in teaching skills, small group facilitation, program implementation/evaluation, and community assessment. The Fellowship is followed by the 3 week academy in which the Fellows will take on an instructive role and facilitate the curricular sessions. This will largely take place at SFGH with some sessions at other UCSF-associated campuses. The Academy will culminate in with SFGH Family Health Center community fair, at which academy HS participants will present to their community highlighting health topics.

The Junior Doctors Academy (JDA) is a special academic enrichment program for motivated seventh and eighth grade students attending Kings Canyon, Sequoia and Terronez Middle Schools and who are interested in a career in medicine or another health profession.

Mentoring in Medicine & Science and EMS Corps, with funding provided by the Alameda County Health Pipeline Partnership, are piloting a program to engage Young Men of Color in a Pre-Health exposure program at Oakland Technical High School. A 13 week program at Oakland Technical High School that will expose young men of color to a variety of health professions. Students will receive relevant experience, from trained professionals, that they can apply to real-world situations. Other benefits will include academic support, mentorship, and preparation for admission into the Oakland Tech Health Academy.