Upper St. Clair students selected for Pitt’s health professions program
Six Upper St. Clair High School students have been selected to participate in the Health Professions Prep program for the spring season at the University of Pittsburgh.
Chosen were sophomores Renuka Kota, Jhoran Laffin, Mahir Parmar, Anuj Shah, Burhaan Waheed and Isabella Zhang.
The program will be held virtually each Wednesday evening through April 6. Students participate in two-week blocks between each school of the health sciences program: health and rehabilitation sciences, medicine, nursing, pharmacy and public health.
The students will have opportunities to engage in a variety of interactions, including career awareness and exploration, clinical experience, student mentoring, academic experience, reflection, observation and influential conversations, academic planning and student success skills.
Health Professions Prep, which serves a maximum of 40 participants, is open to students in ninth through 12th grades who have an overall grade point average of 2.5 or above. Candidates were required to submit an application including an essay and letter of recommendation. The program encourages participation from groups that have been traditionally underrepresented in the health sciences.
The program is designed to introduce a broad variety of career options in health care to its participants. Started in 1974, the educational offering previously was known as the Health Science Career Exploration Institute and the Medical Explorers Program.