Ignite Leadership & Mentorship Program

Building community for diverse students pursuing clinical healthcare careers

IGNITE at PSU

Ignite

Ignite mentors and mentees are pre-health students who want to make PSU and their home communities better through education and building a strong network of support. Ignite emphasizes leadership and mentorship, which includes serving as mentors for incoming pre-health students.

Ignite emphasizes a culture of support and community, which is particularly important in a clinical healthcare career pathways that can be complex and overwhelming for students.

By providing social, career, and academic-oriented supports while reducing financial barriers and increasing the time students have available for activities to support their success, we aim to increase the success of students in their pursuit of healthcare careers. The program began as a partnership between PSU-OHSU School of Public Health, PSU's Center for Internship, Mentoring & Research (CIMR), and Kaiser Permanente but is working to strengthen relationships with additional healthcare organizations.

Applying as a current PSU student

Current PSU pre-health students (who have been enrolled for at least 2 terms at PSU) that are pursuing their 1st bachelors degree are eligible to apply for the program and associated financial benefits through PSU's online scholarship application. Students selected to become Ignite mentors are expected to enroll at PSU full time for the academic year.

Apply to be an Ignite Mentor

Incoming pre-health students seeking mentorship

Incoming pre-health students beginning at PSU in Fall term are eligible to be matched with PSU's Ignite mentors. This is a one-year commitment (Fall, Winter and Spring terms) for mentors and mentees.

Apply to be an Ignite Mentee

Questions about Ignite?

Students with questions about the Ignite program are encouraged to contact their pre-health advisor.

Community members interested in how to support Ignite students can contact: ignite@pdx.edu

Donors interested in contributing to the Ignite program can connect with the PSU Foundation.

Updated on: April 3, 2024