After a year of hard work and dedication to PASS/LAS students, the Executive Board of the Montpellier Health Tutoring Association (ATSM) wanted to thank the tutors and celebrate the association during a special event held on June 13.

BEING A TUTOR: A DAILY COMMITMENT

The ATSM is composed of second- through fourth-year students in medicine, midwifery, and dentistry in Montpellier, who balance their studies with their work as tutors. With 16 years of experience, the organization has received official recognition for its commitment to first-year health sciences students through ministerial accreditations granted since 2018.

This organization relies first and foremost on the daily work of the tutors. Their job responsibilities include conducting classes and practice sessions for first-year students, reviewing multiple-choice questions with faculty members, holding office hours in the “Tutoring Room” to answer any questions, and attending training sessions to stay up to date on reforms to the admissions process for health sciences programs…

The tutors don’t count their hours and often give even more to the tutoring program. In fact, over the course of the year, the ATSM becomes one big, close-knit family, redoubling its efforts to provide the same opportunity for success that the tutors themselves had received during their freshman year. Projects are taking shape to find new ways to learn more effectively: YouTube videos, multiple-choice quizzes on Instagram, review sheets… All these ideas encourage PASS/LAS students to give their best and work even harder to succeed this year.

Because they know how difficult and sometimes confusing the first year can be in terms of academic guidance, the tutors no longer hesitate to volunteer their free time to help organize “well-being” and “academic guidance/reorientation” events. In this way, the Tutoring Program provides both academic and emotional support to the students it mentors.

THE ATSM CELEBRATION: AN EVENING OF GRATITUDE

To highlight the work accomplished and recognize everyone’s efforts, the ATSM Celebration—a warm and friendly event to which all tutors and Honorary Members were invited—was held on June 13, 2023. This festive evening took place at the Faculty of Medicine’s Historic Building, with more than 180 guests in attendance.

To kick off the evening, Dean Isabelle Laffont honored us with a speech delivered in the historic Anatomy Amphitheater. During those few minutes, she reflected on the history of the Tutoring Program, which carries on the tradition of mentorship so dear to health sciences education in Montpellier.

Next, all members of the 2022–2023 Executive Board expressed their sincere thanks to the assembly. Each one emphasized how essential tutors are to the life of the Tutoring Program, and everyone shared an emotional moment as the end of their term drew near. The Executive Board was keen to emphasize the importance of their commitment, which enables the ATSM, year after year, to offer first-year students solid, diverse, and high-quality content.

To keep the party going, other student organizations that also help bring the Faculty to life were enthusiastically invited to highlight the shared spirit and cooperation between the ATSM and the other student organizations in the Faculty of Medicine. Med’Ley and DJ Med’ provided the musical entertainment throughout the evening.

Admission to this event and the buffet were free thanks to the support of ATSM’s public and private partners. Their support makes it possible for the Tutoring Program’s educational content to be provided free of charge throughout the year to all enrolled students.

THE WORK OF THE ATSM, CARRIED ON THROUGH THE YEARS

This event marks the end of the 2022–2023 Executive Board’s term. For the newly elected 2023–2024 Executive Board, it is already time to begin planning the association’s future projects.

The next step for the ATSM will be to open registration in mid-July for all PASS/LAS students interested in its free, essential, and comprehensive support. The Pre-Semester Workshop (August 21–September 2) is already on the minds of all new Executive Board members and mentors, as they aim to write a new chapter in their commitment during this pivotal year.