AHEC Scholars
- 2 Year Program
- 160 Total Hours
- 8 Core Topic Areas
- 40 clinical or community-based hours and 40 didactic hours each year, plus 1 year of follow-up tracking.
What You Will Learn
- Inter-professional education and how disciplines collaborate in practice
- Behavioral health integration and the social determinants of health
- Cultural competency and practice transformation
- Current and emerging health issues affecting rural populations
- Virtual learning, telehealth, and how to connect communities with health professionals
Who Should Join
- Health professions students two years from program or degree completion
- Students in medicine, dental hygiene, pharmacy, nursing, radiology, and medical laboratory programs
- Students with a current interest in rural or underserved healthcare
- Students able to commit to a 2-year participation agreement
- Students in any discipline that supports primary health care service delivery
Requirements
- Current interest in rural or underserved healthcare, currently enrolled in a health professions degree or certificate program, and two years from program or degree completion
- Full-time student enrollment in a college, university, allied health program, or medical school, participating in a medical discipline that supports primary health care service delivery
- Dependable transportation and willingness to sign a 2-year participation commitment agreement
Explore This Program
Overview
About This Program
AHEC Scholars is a program for health professions students interested in supplementing their education by gaining additional knowledge and experience in rural and/or underserved urban settings. This is a longitudinal program with interdisciplinary curricula to implement a defined set of clinical, didactic, and community-based activities. All experiential or clinical training will be conducted in rural and/or underserved urban settings.
Why Join This Program?
Impact
AHEC Scholars puts future clinicians into rural and underserved communities during their training, building both their skills and their connection to the places that most need them once they qualify.
Purpose
The purpose of AHEC Scholars is to develop high-quality, job-ready health care skills through intense inter-professional collaboration with various health care disciplines, in the settings where care is hardest to deliver.
Value
Scholars earn an additional 40 hours of didactic training and 40 hours of clinical training above their required health professions curricula, gaining hands-on experience with medically trained health professionals from diverse backgrounds.
Benefits
Participants gain expanded knowledge about rural and community-based care while working with underserved populations, build inter-professional collaboration skills, and complete a structured 2-year training program open to all disciplines that support primary health care services delivery.
Curriculum
What You’ll Learn
Program duration is two years with one year of follow-up tracking. Each year includes 40 hours of community-based, experiential, or clinical training in a rural and/or underserved area, and 40 hours of didactic education focused on the six core topic areas, for a total of 160 hours.
Inter-professional Education
Structured collaboration with students and practitioners across health care disciplines, building the habits of team-based practice before entering the workforce.
Behavioral Health Integration
How behavioral health is integrated into primary care settings, and why that integration matters most in underserved communities.
Social Determinants of Health
The conditions that shape patient outcomes beyond the clinic, and how practitioners account for them in rural and underserved populations.
Cultural Competency
Practical training on delivering care across cultural difference, a core requirement for effective practice in diverse Louisiana communities.
Practice Transformation
How health care practices adapt and improve delivery models, including current and emerging health issues facing the profession.
Connecting Communities & Telehealth
Connecting communities with and supporting health professionals, plus virtual learning and telehealth as tools for reaching isolated patients.
Testimonials
Program Impact: Student Perspectives
AHEC Scholars work in the communities they will one day serve. Here is what scholars have said about the difference that experience made to their training.
Nicholas Jones
As an AHEC Scholar in medical school, I had the opportunity to provide health education in the community and help build trust with patients by encouraging them to seek care. AHEC fills a critical gap in healthcare.
Eloisa Rubio
I was able to learn more about the medical needs in my community. I am a first generation college student. I am a nurse and currently working on my master’s degree to become a nurse practitioner.
Morgan Setliff
What makes AHEC so important is not just how it helps individual students, but how it transforms communities. AHEC directly addresses this crisis by identifying students from these very communities.
Trusted By
AHEC Scholars is open to students at LSU Alexandria’s School of Nursing, LSU Health Shreveport School of Medicine, and other colleges, universities, allied health programs, and medical schools across our service area.
Secure Your Spot Today
The deadline to apply is September 1st by 11:59 pm. A completed online application must include the application itself, participation in a medical discipline that supports primary health care service delivery, dependable transportation, full-time student enrollment in a college, university, allied health program, or medical school, and willingness to sign a 2-year participation commitment agreement.
FAQ & Contact
Need Help?
Have questions about the time commitment, eligibility, or the core topics? The answers below cover what we’re asked most, and our team is always glad to help.
What is the time commitment for this program?
Students must complete 40 didactic hours and 40 hours of health-related community service per year, for a total of 160 hours across the two-year program.
Who is this program for?
This program is for current 1st year students enrolled in LSUA’s School of Nursing, Radiology, or Medical Lab Science Program or currently enrolled in 1st year at LSU Health Shreveport School of Medicine. It is an opportunity for these students to enrich their future careers in healthcare.
How long does the program last?
Program duration is two years, with one year of follow-up tracking after completion.
What are the eight core topic areas?
Inter-professional Education, Behavioral Health Integration, Social Determinants of Health, Cultural Competency, Practice Transformation, and Current and Emerging Health Issues. The program also covers Connecting Communities and Supporting Health Professionals, and Virtual Learning and Telehealth.
Which disciplines can apply?
This includes but is not limited to students in medicine, nursing, radiology, and medical laboratory programs. The program is open to all disciplines that support primary health care services delivery.
Where does the clinical training take place?
All experiential or clinical training is conducted in rural and/or underserved urban settings.
Do I need to commit for the full two years?
Yes. Participants must be willing to sign a 2-year participation commitment agreement.
Get in Touch
If you have more questions or need personal assistance, feel free to contact us:
info@clahec.org
Drop us a message anytime, we’ll get back to you shortly.
Phone: (318) 443-2855
Available Monday to Friday 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM
CLAHEC Headquarters
1308 Dorchester Drive Alexandria, LA 71303
