A Year of Tutoring

At the Association du Tutorat Santé de Montpellier (ATSM), we have been committed to supporting students in their first year of health studies (PASS/LAS) since 2006.
Supported in particular by subsidies from the Hérault Medical Association and the Faculty of Medicine, with whom we work closely, the support we provide is of the highest quality.
quality, but above all free of charge.

Our association is made up of students in their 2nd to 4th year of various health courses (maïeutics, odontology and medicine), recruited and trained by university professors. Our aim is to enable all students to enter the MMOPKI (Medicine, Maïeutics, Odontology, Physiotherapy, Nursing) healthcare streams without financial constraints.
In this article, we invite you to discover what a year with us is like!

August

The first event organized by the tutoring service for first-year students is the Stage de Pré-Rentrée (or SPR). First-year students benefit from educational sessions covering the essentials of the first semester's courses, as well as Methodology and Well-being workshops. This early start to the academic year is highly recommended to ensure the success of your PASS/LAS. Accompanied by their tutors, students work on their working methods using materials reviewed and approved by the faculty's teaching staff. The SPR concludes with a colloquium, a graded exam to prepare students for the type of exam they will have to take during the year.
As part of its drive for continuous improvement, the tutoring team conducts a satisfaction survey at the end of the pre-internship course, to gather feedback from the tutored students. This feedback is then used to adjust the course to the needs of the following year's first-years.

During the SPR, we present students with Guides, which have been created by ATSM tutors over the years. First of all, the PASS Guide (Parcours Accès Spécifique Santé) and the LAS Guide (Licence Accès Santé) help students to better understand the terms of the reform, which continue to evolve each year. They also explain the programs (see also Guide des Mineures de Réorientation) and the general workings of the faculty, with a presentation of the various associations that exist there.

In addition to this plan, which focuses on university education, the guides also list a number of places where you can work, take care of yourself or have fun in Montpellier. The various activities on offer are adapted both to the budget and to the limited amount of free time available to first-year students, given that this break is essential to their physical and moral well-being.

There's also a Guide Méthodologie/Bien-Être (Methodology/Well-being Guide), which offers a wealth of useful advice, both for managing day-to-day life (diet, sleep, sport, stress...) and for learning to work more efficiently, as well as a Guide des Étudiants Internationaux (International Student Guide), which is new for 2023, and a Guide de l'Oral (Oral Guide), which helps students at the end of the year. The Guide des Étudiants Internationaux contains a wealth of testimonials and advice, both on the administrative side, and on the practical side of adapting to life in a new country, often far from one's family, which can be all the more complicated in a PASS or LAS program.

All these guides are available on the ATSM link-tree.

September

At the beginning of September, two weeks after the start of lectures, tutoring sessions begin. Ahead of the sessions, PASS tutored students are given the sessions in paper and digital format: a number of MCQs, proofread and validated by the subject referent teachers, which ideally need to be prepared in advance so that they can be corrected during the session. During these sessions, students meet in an amphitheater or classroom with several tutors. The tutors correct the MCQs, going over the most complicated points and sharing their methods, tips andmnemonics with the students. Students can ask any questions they may have. If they still have questions, they can use the online forum and the tutoring room, where tutors are available at pre-defined times.

In Semester 1, LAS students have the UE Santé Commune to pass. The organization of tutoring for LAS is identical, with the exception of the sessions which are delivered indematerialized format . At the ATSM office, the position of Vice-President in charge of Health Access Licenses (LAS) was created following the reform, and is the main point of contact between students and the heads of the various faculties, answering students' questions during their year.

To ensure equality of opportunity between the different sites hosting LAS students, sessions are held weekly on Zoom.

October - November

In addition to its pedagogical support, tutoring is also extending its personal support to first-year students. That's why we've set up the Health, Social and Support department and the Well-being department. This is particularly useful at the beginning and during the first semester, when students are settling in and applying for various forms of administrative assistance, and during the winter months, when the emphasis on mental health is even more pronounced.

The first year of health studies can be a stressful one, with repercussions for students' mental health. This is why we are developing projects and initiatives to promote mental health within the faculty. In particular, the ATSM is organizing a training course on the prevention and management of suicidal crises, supervised by faculty professionals, to train ATSM members in how to redirect students in distress. This training, in addition to the pedagogical training our tutors undergo, ensures that we have the skills to extend our support beyond the classroom. Our directory, "Contacts Clés pour l'Accompagnement Psychologique"(Key Contacts for Psychological Support), lists contacts for various emergency situations, psychological follow-up, support for various problems and help with disabilities, and is also available in the link-tree mentioned above.

ATSM works in collaboration with the Service Commun de Médecine Préventive et de Promotion de la Santé (SCMPPS) and the Service d'Handiversité in setting up the Tutorat Handicap. The Tutorat Handicap is in line with our moral commitment to equal opportunities for all students: sessions are held in small groups (2-5 students), to adapt to individual needs, but the program is strictly the same as that of the disciplinary tutoring. ATSM is one of the few tutoring organizations in France to offer this type of support, and we are doing everything in our power to ensure that we continue to offer quality teaching to all our students, without discrimination.

A sponsorship campaign is also organized in October: all first-year students can sign up. They are then put in contact with 2nd and 3rd year students in the MMOPK program, so that they can receive the best possible support throughout their year.

December

The month of December at the tutoring center concludes, two weeks after the end of lectures, with the first White Exam. Over a two-day period, students are placed in a real exam situation, with the same sequence, duration and number of MCQs per subject as on D-Day. To support the students, this terminal training is supervised and animated by the tutors. At the end of the 2 days of practice tests, the papers are corrected, marked and graded. Tutors then have access to their grades and rankings. The design of the sessions and mock exams, in direct collaboration with the teachers, ensures that the teaching resources used are representative and accurate. This event, which brings together more than 900 students every year, is therefore representative of the practice test they will have to take at the beginning of January.

January

The second semester is organized in the same way as the first: sessions start at the end of January and finish at the beginning of April. The special feature of this semester is the preparation for the QR (Question Rédactionnelle) in Human and Social Sciences (SHS). The SHS tutors first run classic sessions to consolidate the PASS students' knowledge, then organize QR Workshops. These sessions focus on QR methodology, and are complemented by QR Interviews: a tutor gives an interview slot to a tutored student to review in detail the positive aspects or areas for improvement of the QR returned by the student, enabling personalized and tailored follow-up.

The Association du Tutorat Santé de Montpellier, in addition to offering effective pedagogical support, provides PASS/LAS students with moral and methodological support . We therefore offer an Instagram page, "Tuto Pep's" (@tuto_peps), as well as a Facebook page "Tuto Pep's", which aim to help students make the most of their first year. The site offers methodological advice, tips on healthy living, mental health, grant applications and housing management, as well as encouragement, presentations of the different courses of study and options for reorientation.

One example is the " Midis Partage", where tutors come to answer PASS/LAS questions and share their experiences during the lunch break. Midis Jeux are also organized with board games, or Blind tests organized by the Med'ley music association, where first years can come and relax.

Finally, the major Wellness event of the year takes place between the end of January and the beginning of February: Pep's Days. This event consists of 4 lunchtimes spread over two weeks, during which activities such as massages by student physiotherapists, blinds tests, sophrology sessions, sign language training, self-hypnosis, etc. are held. Savoury and sweet buffets are available to students, and Welcome Packs filled with goodies are distributed. The event, which is entirely free of charge, gives PASS/LAS students a chance to take their minds off their studies and have some fun with their friends during their break in what has been a particularly trying year for them.

Reorientation is especially important in the second semester, when Parcoursup and E-Candidat choices are made. What's more, after the results of the first semester, many students are questioning their orientation. It's also at this time that we organize an orientation forum at the university: the principle is the same as a career forum, but with students from other fields than MMOPKI, many of whom are in the paramedical field.

February

The Service Communitaire Universitaire d'Information, d'Orientation et d'Insertion Professionnelle (Scuio-IP) recruits one of our tutors each year to become their ambassador. The role of the ambassador is to present health studies in the region's high schools. All tutors also receive training on the Réforme d'Entrée dans les Études de Santé, so that they can best respond to questions. PASS/LAS students also have access to an OREO (Orientation et REOrientation) forum on their Moodle space, where they can ask any questions they may have about their orientation.

We also interact with high school students at student fairs, immersive days and open days. At some trade fairs, we are even the direct representatives of the Montpellier Faculty of Medicine. It's the role of VP OREO to organize these events, in collaboration with the faculty.

Since 2021, the Semaine des Lycéens has taken place every year during the February school vacations. To ensure that as many local high school students as possible can take advantage of it, the various slots take place on Zoom, and rather at the end of the day. The course is entirely free of charge, and you can attend as many slots as you like. In the event of favorable health conditions, we also offer a face-to-face day when high-school students can come and discover the faculty and how it works.

During this week, high school students can find out about the different health courses available after a PASS or LAS, and how to gain admission to these courses. There's also a methodology slot to help them prepare for that famous "First Year". Finally, we offer introductory sessions to the different courses students will be taking during their first year, making the link with the notions they acquired in high school. The aim of this week is to reassure high school students about the difficulty of their future studies.

March

Tutoring provides both pedagogical and moral support, even beyond the first year. In fact, our Reorientation Guide ensures that everyone has a way out if they are not admitted to a healthcare stream after a PASS or LAS. In this guide, you'll find out about many other, sometimes little-known courses, such as certain paramedical courses, and how to get into them.

However, you need to think about this during the year, because you mustn't miss the key dates for platforms like Parcoursup or E-candidat, which allow you to reserve a backup plan for the coming year.

April

The White Exam for the second semester is similar to that of the first semester. Over two days, there are four 1-hour tests (UE4, UE6, UE8, UE9), one 1.5-hour test (UE7: Biophysics) and the 2-hour QR (UE5: Human and Social Sciences), as on the day of the final exam at the end of April. Thanks to the dynamism of the tutors who supervise these exams, the Examen Blanc takes place in good spirits.
It represents a final training session, enabling students to fine-tune their methodology, perfect their knowledge and position themselves among their peers before the real exam.

June

Tutoring also provides free preparation for the second group of tests. These are two oral tests consisting of a commentary on an iconographic document and an analysis of a problem related to human health. Each test lasts 30 minutes, with 20 minutes preparation, 5 minutes presentation and 5 minutes discussion with the jury. In the week leading up to the orals, tutors selected and trained by the referent teachers in charge of the orals provide three preparation sessions for the mentees.

It's an opportunity for mentees to practice their speaking skills, develop their critical thinking skills and learn about the test procedures. This preparation is carried out in small groups and face-to-face for PASS students. The same offer is available remotely for LAS students.

July

At ATSM, tutors are recruited in July. Tutors in their 2nd year of health studies are known as Tuteurs Stagiaires (TS), and are supervised by the Vice-President in charge of Tuteurs Stagiaires throughout their year. Recruitment is aimed at finding the best profiles to support first-year students.

Tutor support continues throughout the academic year, with ongoing training provided by the 3rd-year Qualified Tutors (TQs) who supervise the Tutor Trainees (TTTs), and by training courses on a wide variety of subjects: Tutors have rights and duties, such as attending their PASS and LAS sessions, taking part in their in-person or online sessions, supervising exam papers and mock exams, answering PASS/LAS questions on the dedicated forum, and it's the combination of these duties that ensures we work towards quality tutoring. At the end of the year, following an interview with the tutoring teachers, trainee tutors can become qualified tutors.

Finally, our association is recognized by the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research, which has granted us ministerial approval. This testifies to the quality and relevance of our support, with the aim of ensuring equal opportunities and access to health studies for all. Throughout the year, we strive to provide high-quality tutoring, true to its promise of entirely free support, centered on solidarity between classes, which is a pillar of health studies at the Faculté de Médecine Montpellier-Nîmes.

ATSM contacts :
Facebook: Tutorat Santé Montpellier
Instagram : @tutoratsantemtp
Twitter: @TutoratSanteMTP