Tomorrow’s podiatrists training in state of the art surgical facility at Des Moines University. APMA recognizes the importance of recruiting the best students to podiatric medical colleges.

APMA believes student recruitment is vital to the success of the profession. Our strategic plan, which was revised last year, and Vision 2015 recognize the importance of recruiting the best students to podiatric medical colleges. The future of our profession will be greatly influenced by the men and women who choose to pursue podiatric medical education.

Input from membership surveys and leadership meetings, however, has indicated that APMA should not play the primary role in student recruitment.  There are other stakeholders, such as the American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine (AACPM) and the colleges themselves, which should have more responsibility for student recruitment. Based upon that feedback, APMA’s strategic plan was revised to reflect a less direct role in student recruitment efforts. AACPM and colleges will now be taking the lead in that area.

APMA will continue to be engaged in career guidance and education, particularly as part of the Today’s Podiatrist campaign to elevate and promote podiatric medicine. For student recruitment to be truly successful though, we need every member to promote the profession. Consider volunteering to become a mentor, or to let a potential student shadow you for a day. Contact APMA’s marketing department to learn more about shadowing opportunities.

On January 25, APMA is hosting a student recruitment forum for key stakeholders. The goal of the forum is to facilitate a smooth transition of these activities and to brainstorm creative ways to improve the profession’s efforts to recruit high-quality students. If you have any student recruitment ideas you’d like me to share, please leave a message in the comments.