University of California San Francisco
UCSF School of Medicine UCSF Medical Center

Opportunities for High School Students

Are you a Bay Area public high school student interested in health and science? The UCSF School of Medicine offers an exciting, hands-on educational program that enables high school students to explore potential careers in healthcare and research. This is your chance to learn from students from UCSF’s five professional schools! 

HealthLink

Healthlink is a free, year-long program for first-generation college-bound high school students in the Bay Area. HealthLink seeks to advance diversity through mentoring the next generation of health professionals by connecting high school students (high school sophomores are given preference) with a UCSF graduate student mentor from one of the five health professional schools: Nursing, Pharmacy, Dentistry, Physical Therapy, and Medicine.  

Monthly sessions include one-on-one conversations with your mentor, ice-breaker activities, and hands-on workshops that explore the wonders of the human body as they intersect with the health professions. Career-focused workshops will help you visualize your path from high school to college and on to graduate school. In addition to monthly Saturday sessions, mentors serve as a long-term resource to help you navigate high school to set yourself up for success in your academic and extracurricular activities. 

How to Apply

The 2023-2024 application cycle is now closed.

Session Information

2023-2024 Session Dates

  • Saturday, October 28, 2023
  • Saturday, November 4, 2023
  • Saturday, December 2, 2023
  • Saturday, January 13, 2024
  • Saturday, February 3, 2024
  • Saturday, March 2, 2024
  • Saturday, March 30, 2024
  • Saturday, May 4, 2024
  • Saturday, May 18, 2024
Eligibility

To be eligible for HealthLink, applicants must:

  • Be a first-generation college-bound high school student from the San Francisco Bay Area (high school sophomores are given preference)
  • Be considered disadvantaged* or from an underrepresented community
  • Referred from one of our partner organizations or a high school teacher

* A disadvantaged individual is one who is from a family with an annual income below established low-income thresholds AND/OR a social, cultural, or educational environment such as those found in certain rural or inner-city environments that have demonstrably presented barriers to navigating admissions or access to health science careers.

    HealthLink UCSF Student Leadership:

    Thang Diep, UCSF Co-Coordinator
    Will Li, UCSF Co-Coordinator
    Timothy Keeley, UCSF Co-Coordinator

    For general program information, please contact SOMOutreach@ucsf.edu.

    Interested in other opportunities for high school students?

    Visit the UCSF Center for Science Education and Outreach and the UCSF Science and Health Education Partnership for more high school pathway and exploration programs.