Osler Student Societies John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine

The Osler Student Societies are a program of the John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine. Although other health sciences universities have student societies, as far as we've been able to determine, this is the only one in which the focus is specifically promoting the ideals embodied by Sir William Osler.

The development of the Societies was a special project and passion of Dr. Mark Holden, an Osler Scholar. The Societies enrolled their first full class of entering freshman in August 2006. Faculty mentors are nominated by students based on their excellence at teaching and modeling Oslerian ideals. Each Student Society also has three or four student mentors. These include the Osler Student Scholars and select upperclassmen who are invited to continue to participate and to act as mentors to the first and second year students.

The Student Societies typically schedule 5-6 activities a year, but the faculty mentors are available for consultation with the students in their groups throughout the year. One of the first tasks for the Osler Student Societies was choosing names. They were told to pick an influential and inspiring historic figure in medicine. They came up with the following:

Student participation in societies is voluntary, and all undergraduate students in the UTMB John Sealy School of Medicine are invited to participate. It is the hope that the availability of strong mentors will attract student participation and provide the opportunity for students to experience professional and personal growth through their encounters with their Society mentors.

The vision of the Osler Student Societies is to provide developing physicians insight into "A Way of Life", described by Sir William Osler, not through formal lecture, but through the guidance of mentors in contact with students within and outside their academic setting.

The goals of the Student Societies are:

To enhance Faculty-Student interaction,
To enhance mentoring and advising of students by faculty,
To promote professionalism and humanism,
To promote community service, and
To promote the development of mentoring skills and comradery among students.

View or download a copy of the Osler Student Societies' Handbook HERE.

View the list of student coordinators and mentors for each society HERE.

View a copy of Osler for White Coat Pockets HERE. This Vade Mecum for Medical Students and Residents is an introduction to the life of Sir William Osler written for medical students and newly minted physicians.

Consideration for Osler Student Society Name Change:

Society name changes will be considered by following these guidelines: Name Change Policies