Reflections on the 2024-2025 MSTP Student Advisory Committee
by Drew Kittleson (G4)
With the culmination of our final meeting of the academic year and the announcement of incoming leadership, my time as Chair of the MSTP’s Student Advisory Committee has ended, allowing me to reflect on our accomplishments and goals for the future. This year, our theme was Collaboration—between students, committees, community partners, and other institutions. Over my time in SAC leadership, I have seen the importance of student collaboration, and my hope is that this year’s initiatives highlight what can be achieved when working towards shared goals.
The 2024-2025 academic year could have been defined by uncertainty, with several large changes and updates to our program, school, and broader community that affected student experiences. Despite this uncertainty, progress within our MSTP continued to be made, and student-led initiatives brought through SAC to leadership demonstrated how committed the program is to improve. Our anonymous SAC survey proved to be an excellent way to solicit student feedback, and this year we received feedback from members in every class, highlighting the importance of collecting perspectives across training levels. Some recent examples of SAC-led changes to the MSTP student experience include:
- Assisting other schools’ MSTPs with the creation of their student advisory committees
- Offering space for students to learn more about graduate student unionization efforts from Vanderbilt University and the Vanderbilt Graduate Workers’ Union
- Creating a “Return to Immersion Phase” checklist for G3+ students, with periodic reminders for important milestones
- Facilitating the creation of a student-led CPP Committee
- Leading efforts to identify the new Associate Director for Clinical Education
- Including student interviewers in free lunches for their recruitment efforts
- Matching Portfolio Coaches with returning M4 MSTPs whenever possible
- Assisting with the standardization of the selection process for CAB leaders
- Redistributing responsibilities from the Alumni Committee into the APSA institutional representative role based on overlapping goals
Looking towards the upcoming 2025-2026 academic year, I am excited to share that Mark Petrovic (G3) will lead SAC as Chair, with Emma Hope (G2) serving as the newly elected Chair-Elect. Mark and Emma have both demonstrated their interest in, and commitment to, improving our MSTP and I am confident that they will guide our programmatic goals in exciting directions.
SAC is, at its core, a conduit for relaying student feedback, and I want to thank the students of our MSTP across all levels of training for fully and actively participating towards that end. From presenting on committee updates during monthly SAC meetings to sharing valuable insights from our representatives, SAC is best when our students feel empowered to share their thoughts with leadership. I am proud to have helped lead these important conversations during my time as SAC Chair and am excited to see how we continue to grow in the coming years.
Proudly,
Drew Kittleson
SAC Chair, 2024-2025
