Pathway Programs
Developing a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve is an important part of the steps needed to reduce health disparities and advance health equity. Through historical programing and new initiatives, our pathway programs inspire K-12 and college students to choose careers in medicine and research.
K-12
The Nebraska Science Festival began in 2013 as an initiative of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, which continues to administer the festival with the assistance of a number of organizations and individuals interested in the advancement of science literacy. The Science Festival is designed to make science accessible, interactive, relevant and fun for kids and adults alike.
This program is funded by a Science Education Partnership Award from National Institutes of Health.
A partnership between the University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute (MMI), the Great Plains Area Tribal Chairmen’s Health Board (GPTCHB), and K-12 schools in Nebraska and South Dakota. The scope of the SEPA program is to support the development and evaluation of model biomedical science partnerships that focus on health-related sciences.
UNO & UNMC Building Excellence in Academics Through STEM (uBEATS) is series of cancer, genetics, microbiology, pathology, pharmacology, public health, college prep and health care career modules. uBEATS is designed for grades 6 – 12 to enhance existing curriculum and provide information on top of what students learn in the classroom.
This e-learning resource was created by education and STEM experts at the University of Nebraska Omaha and the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
High School
Our UNMC High School Alliance program offers local juniors and seniors a nontraditional academic experience shadowing and working alongside world-renowned health care professionals and researchers.
REACH (Recruit, Encourage and Advance Careers in Healthcare) is an effort by the DEI office at the college of medicine in collaboration with UNMC medical students to increase their interests in healthcare to local high school students.
High School and Undergraduate
The purpose of the Youth Enjoy Science! (YES!) program encourages partnerships between biomedical scientists, science educators, and community leaders for cancer education and prevention. The YES! program also aims to increase the number of Native American cancer research and health care professionals. High school and undergraduate college students with Native American ancestry can participate in cancer research experiences at the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center at the University of Nebraska Medical Center or the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Undergraduate
In Nebraska, a National Institutes of Health grant supports the Institutional Development Award Program (IDeA) Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) program. The program, funded through INBRE, aims to create a biomedical research infrastructure that provides research opportunities for undergraduate students and serves as a pipeline for those students to continue into graduate research. The Nebraska INBRE network consists of nine undergraduate institutions and three PhD granting institutions that serve the network as training and mentoring institutions.
DEI office's medical pathways program launched the "LEAP" (Long-term Enhanced Advising & Preparation) program to medical school for undergraduates in the summer of 2021. The goal of the program is to help college students from backgrounds that are underrepresented in medicine, such as Black, Native American, and Latin@ students, first-generation college students, students from underserved rural and urban communities who often do not have a support network and the proper guidance to help them prepare a successful application and matriculation to health professions schools, particularly in medicine.
The Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP) is a free summer enrichment program focused on improving access to information and resources for college students interested in the health professions. SHPEP aims to strengthen the academic proficiency and career development of students underrepresented in the health professions and prepare them for a successful application and matriculation to health professions schools.
The UNMC Summer Research Program for Undergraduate Minority Students offers a clinical research experience in kidney disease and transplantation. The program takes place in the UNMC Department of Surgery and is under the direction of Arika Hoffman, MD.
The Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) collaborates between UNMC departments, institutes, colleges, student services, and graduate specialty areas to provide summer opportunities for undergraduate students to become members of research teams and discover first-hand the broad spectrum of research activities occurring at UNMC.