Rx for Success pre-matriculation course marks third year with record participation and growing impact

Seventy-three incoming first-year medical students participated in the Rx for Success pre-orientation course.

The Academic Success Team within the Office of Accreditation and Planning at the Whiddon College of Medicine hosted the third annual Rx for Success: Achieving Academic Excellence in Medical School pre-orientation course July 21-24. Now in its third year, the course continues to build momentum, drawing a record 73 incoming M1 students — a milestone that required a change in venues to accommodate the full in-person cohort.

Directed by David S. Williams, Ph.D., MPA, and Angie O’Neal, M.Ed., the course offered a dynamic blend of learning science, personal development, and professional preparation. The instructional team included faculty and staff from across the college, alongside two M2 student facilitators, Charity Yarbrough and Allee Alexander, who received dedicated professional development prior to the course to enhance their leadership and teaching skills.

A hallmark of the course was its focus on personalized learning plans, helping students identify their learning strengths, and anticipate academic challenges through structured self-assessment, reflective practice, and goal-setting. Each session emphasized actionable strategies grounded in evidence-based learning science, empowering students to approach their M1 year with clarity and confidence.

The four-day course included immersive instruction in:

• Research-based learning strategies
• Time and task management techniques
• Resilience and self-regulation skills
• Peer collaboration and professional identity formation

“Rx for Success was created in 2023 to equip incoming students with practical, evidence-based learning strategies that ease the transition to medical school,” said Williams, assistant dean for institutional and academic success. “Seeing students engage so enthusiastically with the material and with each other was both energizing and affirming. I am thrilled that one of the first programs created by the formal Academic Success Team is now stronger than ever.”

“Rx for Success is designed to equip students with what they need to thrive in medical school from day one,” said O’Neal, director of learning support services. “We focus on helping them manage the workload, learn how to study effectively and retain information over time, and use self-reflection as an ongoing practice to improve and adapt. It’s about building a strong foundation and staying grounded throughout the journey.”

M2 facilitators Yarbrough and Alexander played an integral role in guiding discussions, facilitating peer-learning sessions, and supporting participants as they translated strategies into personalized approaches.

“Attending Rx for Success last year as an incoming M1 really helped ease my nerves about beginning medical school and helped me develop a plan to succeed through my first year,” Alexander said. “Getting to serve as a facilitator this year has been so rewarding. It has been such a privilege to mentor the incoming M1 class and help them develop their own study strategies they will use throughout their time in medical school and beyond.”

Yarbrough added, “I’m thankful for the opportunity to mentor the incoming M1 class because I provided them authentic insight into life as a medical student.” 

“Rx for Success has grown into one of our most impactful student success initiatives,” said Tim Gilbert, Ed.D., associate dean of accreditation and planning. “It’s not just about content — it’s about culture.”

The Academic Success Team remains committed to refining and expanding Rx for Success in the years ahead. Williams is leading a longitudinal research and program evaluation effort to better understand how students implement the learning science principles introduced in the program, and how these strategies influence academic performance, confidence, and development across the phases of medical education. He is working alongside T.J. Hundley, M.D., and Nia Booth, a student facilitator from last year’s course, to present expanded findings at the National Association of Medical Education Learning Specialists Conference in November.

“We’re learning a lot about how exposure to structured, evidence-based strategies impacts long-term development in medical school,” Williams said. “It’s exciting to take what we’re discovering here at the Whiddon College of Medicine about our pre-matriculation programming and share those lessons with national audiences who are also thinking deeply about how to support students before day one.”

View more photos on Flickr.

Members from the Office of Accreditation Planning (Academic Success Team), faculty from the Division of Medical Education, and M2 student facilitators served as the primary instructional team.