Paul Charles, project coordinator in the T.H. Chan School of Medicine Office of Admissions

What is your role and how does it support the institution?
As director of the Baccalaureate MD (BaccMD) Pathway Program, I work closely with undergraduates from across the UMass system who are from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups in medicine; economically disadvantaged; or first generation four-year college graduates, to help them improve their chances for success in securing acceptance to the T.H. Chan School of Medicine. The goal of the Pathway Program is to reduce health disparities by developing a pool of diverse students aspiring to careers in health care.

What part of your job brings you the greatest satisfaction?
Seeing the personal growth of all the Medical Scholars in the BaccMD Program. It is especially rewarding to see BaccMD Medical Scholars here at the T.H. Chan School of Medicine as medical students. Working with undergraduate students, you want them all to succeed and fulfill their goal of becoming physicians.

What do you like about working at UMMS?
I really like the extraordinary network of collaboration between faculty, staff and medical students. There have been so many people who’ve volunteered their time in some way to make the BaccMD Program successful. Whether it is as a clinical site host, as a guest lecturer, mock interviewer, or a mentor to a Medical Scholar, everyone seems to be invested in creating an environment for others to succeed.