What if you are high school student from a small rural town and you have your heart set on becoming a pediatrician? But you don’t know yet how you will afford community college, much less medical school. How will you get from point A to B to MD? Maybe you are a Hispanic American who nurtures a yen for dentistry even while you are expected to join the family business. Who can help you break out of the mold?

Or, you are an African American who is working your way through school, led by your goal of being a surgeon. Where can you find a mentor?

AHECs to the rescue!

What the heck is an AHEC? It stands for Area Health Education Center. Established by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1971, 54 AHECs now serve their communities through 208 centers in 47 states and the District of Columbia.  They fulfill one purpose: to build the pipeline of health care professionals by connecting students to health career professionals and to communities to improve health care outcomes.

 One of AHECs’ ultimate goals is to recruit more minorities and students from rural areas into the health professions. That’s a fancy way of saying AHECs work to link health care professions students with:

• specialized scholarship opportunities for needy populations
• professional mentors through training programs known as preceptorships
• loan repayment programs in exchange for working in medically underserved areas
• clinical placements
• a broad range of resources available through the Federal Bureau of Health Professions

Because most AHECs operate on a nonprofit basis, they offer their education services free or at very low cost. They measure their success in outcomes that service health professions students, professionals and their communities. You could be part of an AHEC, “Here’s How I Became a Practicing Healthcare Professional” success story yourself!

There’s always a way and AHECs can help. Check it out here: http://www.nationalahec.org/About/Highlights-SuccessStories.asp