Pre Meeting Course Submissions

Full Day

Implement strategies to effectively prepare medical students for the surgery clerkship, ensuring a smooth transition and foundational understanding of expectations.

Integrate current trends based on available literature in undergraduate medical education into the core surgery clerkship curriculum to enhance its relevance and effectiveness.

Evaluate the resources and support systems available for surgery clerkship directors and coordinators, and develop a plan to manage their clerkship more effectively.

Formulate a comprehensive approach to supporting medical students, addressing their needs regarding accommodations, learning resources, and wellness.

1. Membership Growth and Engagement
The course is a pre-meeting event, an annual venue that serves as a key component of the Association's offerings. By providing a valuable, interactive, full-day program, it serves as a powerful incentive for both new and continuing members to attend the main meeting. The course's focus on practical, relevant topics directly addresses the professional needs of surgical clerkship directors and coordinators, thereby fostering increased engagement. The interactive format, featuring an expert panel and a medical student panel, creates a strong sense of community and encourages active participation, which is a core part of building an engaged membership.

2. Infrastructure Alignment
The course is a direct initiative of the ASE Surgery Clerkship Director Committee. This demonstrates a clear alignment of the Association’s infrastructure—its committees and personnel—with its strategic priorities. The fact that the committee has identified specific, high-priority topics (e.g., AI, professionalism) shows a proactive use of internal resources to address current issues in surgical education.

3. Financial Sustainability
While not explicitly stated, successful, high-quality courses like this one are a critical part of the Association's financial model. The course has a registration fee, which generates revenue. By attracting a strong attendance, it contributes to the overall financial health of the organization. Historically, this course has been a net financial positive for the association. A valuable course also enhances the Association’s reputation, which can lead to increased membership renewals and future conference registrations, ensuring financial stability and enabling future growth.

4. Leadership Development
This course is a prime example of the Association's commitment to fostering leadership. By selecting speakers who are not only known surgical educators but also hold leadership roles, the course models and promotes leadership within the field. The interactive format, which encourages the sharing of "best practices," allows current and aspiring leaders to learn from each other.

5. Innovation and Scholarship Excellence
The course directly supports innovation and scholarship. The inclusion of topics like the "Role of Artificial Intelligence" and "landmark papers in surgical education" demonstrates a commitment to advancing the field beyond traditional teaching methods. The speakers, who will share practices based on both personal experience and "what is published in current surgical education literature," are actively linking practice to scholarship. The course itself acts as a platform for disseminating new ideas and research findings, encouraging participants to think critically and innovate within their own programs.

The success of this course will be measured through a multi-faceted approach, primarily through participant feedback. We also factor in the feedback from the Executive Leadership Board.

First, direct participant evaluation will serve as a primary metric. All attendees will complete a post-course evaluation, which is a standard procedure for all ASE courses. This feedback is crucial for assessing how well the program met its stated objectives. The committee will analyze this feedback to identify areas of success and opportunities for improvement, with the goal of annually adjusting the course format and topics to ensure continued relevance and value to the audience.

Second, the course will be evaluated by its impact on the Association's growth and engagement. The course has already demonstrated success in fostering the expansion of the Clerkship Director Committee, a direct result of the platform it provides for new members to share their expertise. The continued growth of this committee, along with the active participation of both new and established educators, will be a key indicator of the course's effectiveness in cultivating a vibrant and engaged community. By actively involving a diverse range of new members, the course not only leverages new perspectives but also reinforces the Association's role as a leader in surgical education.

Demonstrable Change in Clerkship Management
Implementation of New Strategies: At least >50% of surveyed participants report implementing at least one new strategy or best practice in their clerkship within six months of the course (e.g., changes to professionalism discussions, new advising protocols, or integration of AI topics).

Improved Resource and Support Utilization: A follow-up survey of Clerkship Directors and Coordinators shows a measurable increase in their self-reported confidence or effectiveness in managing their clerkship and utilizing available support systems. This could be tracked by asking participants to rate their effectiveness before and after the course on a numerical scale, with a target average increase.

Enhanced Student Preparedness and Support
Positive Student Feedback: Post-course, institutions whose directors/coordinators attended the session report a measurable improvement in medical student feedback related to preparedness for the surgery clerkship and the quality of advising.

Creation of Shared Resources: The course facilitates the development and sharing of a new, high-quality educational resource (e.g., a standardized advising guide, a module on AI in surgery) among the attendees, as a direct collaborative outcome of the discussions and best practice sharing.

By focusing on these applied and measurable outcomes, the project can demonstrate that the information and discussions had a lasting impact on surgical education beyond simply a positive one-time experience for the attendees.

However, this will take time and the effects of this may not be fully realized for a few years.

Impact on the Association of Surgical Education (ASE)
The project will primarily impact the ASE through growth, engagement, and reinforcement of its leadership position.

Expanded Committee and Membership: The course is a proven platform for fostering the expansion of the Clerkship Director Committee as well joining the Academy of Clerkship Directors. By actively involving a diverse range of new members and educators, it will cultivate a vibrant and engaged community, ensuring a pipeline of new leadership and perspectives. The continued growth of this committee, along with the active participation of both new and established educators, will be a key indicator of the course's effectiveness.

Enhanced Value Proposition and Reputation: By annually adjusting the course format and topics based on participant and Executive Leadership Board feedback, the ASE demonstrates its commitment to providing relevant and valuable professional development. This reinforces the Association's reputation as a leader in surgical education and encourages continued member retention and recruitment.

Knowledge Dissemination Hub: The course utilizes speakers who are surgical educators and leaders to share best practices based on both personal experience and published literature. This positions the ASE as the central repository for cutting-edge strategies in managing and teaching the surgery clerkship.

Impact on Surgical Education in General
The project's impact on the broader field of surgical education will be achieved through standardized excellence, curriculum modernization, and improved student outcomes.

Standardizing Best Practices: The course directly addresses core issues like Professionalism, Navigating the 4th-year surgical curriculum and advising, and Best practices in clerkship management. This focus on proven methods and effective strategies will lead to a more consistent and high-quality educational experience across different medical schools, elevating the standard of surgical education nationally.

Driving Curriculum Modernization: By dedicating sessions to topics like the Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and a review of Landmark papers in surgical education, the course ensures that clerkship curricula are informed by the latest research and technological advancements. This provides attendees with the tools to update their own programs, keeping the surgical curriculum relevant and effective.

Improving Student Preparedness and Support: The inclusion of a Medical student panel to share their perspective provides clerkship directors and coordinators with direct, actionable insight into student experiences. This ensures that the applied strategies will better equip students and lead to a surgical clerkship that is more supportive and better prepares students for their final year and career decisions.

Empowering Leaders: The course equips Clerkship Directors and Coordinators with the knowledge and resources to manage their clerkship more effectively. By empowering these leaders, the course creates a ripple effect, as their improved efficiency and skill will directly translate into a more organized and successful learning experience for hundreds of medical students annually.

**This proposal was initially drafted using an AI assistant to quickly synthesize course objectives and content into the required format. The author has since edited and refined the output to ensure the content accurately reflects the specific mission and strategic priorities of the ASE Surgery Clerkship Director Committee."

Conference Room Rental - $0
A/V - $1800 was the spend in 2025
Chair/table rental - $0
Advertisement - - $0
CME Fees to ACS - $3,300

Discussed with Meghan Nabors

Yes, CME will be offered.

$375.00

No