Celebrating 24 years of excellence: The Annual Symposium on Career Opportunities in Biomedical Sciences & Health Professions

The 24th Annual Symposium on Career Opportunities in Biomedical Sciences was held in Birmingham, Alabama. Tuskegee University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Nursing and Allied Health, served as the host institution for the event. At this year’s event, there were 299 minority high school juniors and seniors, and undergraduate students in attendance.
 
Students were provided an opportunity to interact with professionals from a wide spectrum of biomedical science and health professions fields. This interaction was achieved through educational workshops, interactive sessions, exhibits/career fairs and poster presentations. The following provides an overview of the activities in which students participated at the 24th Annual Symposium.
 
Through various workshops, the Symposium was able to disseminate information on career opportunities in pharmaceutical sciences, veterinary medicine, public health and medicine, as well as career pathways into the biomedical sciences and health professions.

Additionally, workshops offered information on undergraduate and graduate school preparation.
Workshop presenters, made up of research and teaching faculty at AMHPS member schools in addition to renowned minority scientists, were an integral part of the Symposium.
 
The Symposium featured approximately thirty-five (35) concurrent workshops, each pertaining to a different constellation of biomedical science and health professions careers. The goal of these workshops was to encourage students to continue on a track focused on a science career. Speakers in these sessions were established professionals at their respective institutes, agencies, institutions and corporations.
 
Workshop sessions included:

• Career Opportunities in Medicine, Science, and Health
• Choosing a Career in Public Health
• What is a Physician Assistant?
• Growing Into a Forensic Scientist
• Careers in Veterinary Medicine
• Becoming A Scientist: Considerations for the Minority Student in Choosing a Career in Science
• Exploring Allied Health Careers that Address Health Care Disparities in Communities of Color