We know that a conference from 8:30 am - 5 pm, is a long day. Our advice below will help you maximize your time and opportunities on Conference day. Before we begin a breakdown of the day, here are a few general rules of thumb. 

1. Take notes. We know you say you’ll remember, but don’t take that chance.

2. If possible, unmute and have your video on when appropriate. This will help speakers remember you and have a more “normal” interaction.

3.  Use this as an opportunity to explore and connect. 

Don’t just take it from us! Learn from Isabella, a past Conference attendee on the advice she would give to her younger self:

“I’d tell myself to really listen to my interests and what makes me curious! Instead of limiting myself to one specific path within healthcare, I’d tell myself to be more open to any opportunity that comes my way- every experience is a learning experience!” - Isabella A., pre-med, Cognitive Science (Neuroscience Emphasis) major

Morning Session: 8:30 - 9 am PDT

This is an opportunity to hear from Conference leadership and enter to win our giveaways. Our team will welcome you to your Conference and provide important logistical information for the day, including our Info Booth. 

Pre-Health Exhibitors Fair: 9 am - 12:30 pm PDT

Our Fair will feature admissions representatives from health professional schools and organizations from across the nation and world. Whether you’re a first year exploring a health field or an applicant in the cycle, going to exhibitor fairs is an important step in standing out in the application process and finding new resources. 

• Approaching the Fair
• Out of the 25 categories represented in the fair, almost all of them have representatives from many different states (and sometimes countries). It can be easy to jump to the schools you have already heard of before. However, chances are, many others have heard this name before as well and representatives at these schools will be swamped. As an attendee at a Fair, it is advantageous for you to visit schools that are lesser known as you will have a higher chance to interact in a smaller crowd.

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  For the Fair, we recommend creating a list of booths you plan to visit. Keep the schools you have heard of, but also add new schools. This is an opportunity to find more schools that align with you and your goals. 
• How to Explore Schools and Do Research
• Location is typically the first way people explore schools. For some, their school list is limited based on location due to financial or other personal reasons.

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  For those that can, we encourage exploring out of state schools, particularly for medical school, as many health professional schools are competitive. Many of the schools at our Fair accept out-of-state applicants, international students, and DACA recipients. We encourage exploring schools based on other factors, including curriculum, available student clubs/organizations, who is represented in past classes, track options, research opportunities, patient population, etc.   

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  To research into a school, we recommend putting yourself in the shoes of someone who already goes there. For example, if you are interested in research and applying to medical school, you can Google search: research opportunities at (name of medical school attending fair) OR research opportunities in medical school.
• Ask Good Questions
• - Be considerate! Have your camera on and unmute when possible. We also don’t recommend asking them why you should apply. 

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  - Be mindful. Don’t start off the conversation with asking what the minimum GPA or test score is to apply with. These are okay things to discuss later into a conversation. 

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  - Try to ask questions not easily found on their website. (e.g., pre-reqs, letter of recommendation requirements, etc.)

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  - We encourage creating questions based on the research above and expand when possible. Ask about the student experience, about the patients they serve, about their curriculum, etc.

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  Example 1: “I have been doing __ research and am interested in continuing research in medical school. On your website I saw students have the opportunity to do __ research program. What is the process of being involved and do you have any tips on the application?” Example 2: “I saw from your website you have interprofessional learning and early clinical experiences. What does that look like for first year medical students?”
• Follow Up
• During the session ask if you can have their contact information. During breaks, jot down what you learned and who you engaged with. After Conference, follow up with an email to thank them for their time and include a small specific tidbit. Hold onto your notes for when you are creating your school list and writing your supplemental essays.

Workshop Sessions 1:10 - 5 pm PDT

Our Workshops will feature presentations from practicing health professionals, admissions representatives, panels, test prep companies, and other experts. This is an opportunity to learn from experts, explore different fields, and ask good questions.

• Explore
• We encourage creating a list of a few workshop every hour that you are interested in attending as workshops can be high in demand. 

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  Whether you’re exploring between professions or within one, workshops can be an opportunity to hear from practicing professionals on their career journeys. Check the speaker list! Even if you have attended a similar workshop before, chances are new perspectives can give new insights.
• Do Research
• While the workshop description should give some background into a workshop, doing research on who/which schools is presenting can be helpful. For example, if you know you are interested in a specific specialty, check to see if any speakers are in that or a similar field to help you explore. Another example could be if you didn’t get a chance to speak with a school during the fair, but see they will be presenting or on a panel later in the day. (Even better if you get to learn from a school during both sessions!)
• Ask Good Questions
• If you’re attending a workshop with an admissions representative the same advice from above applies here as well. If a health professional is presenting, we encourage you to focus on questions based on their career and their journey. While the presentation might already discuss things like “why did you choose __” and “what are the pros and cons of __,” you can create follow up questions based on their answers. You could also ask questions about the future, like  “how do you see __ field changing within 5 - 10 years” or “what do you think your next step in your career is.”   

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  If you have questions about professional school we encourage speaking to current health professional students and reaching out to schools to be in contact with their students. (At the Fair you could even ask if you could be put in contact with a current student involved in __.) If you have questions on admissions, we recommend connecting with admissions representatives.