How did this program begin?

The Grad School Prep Program at Advocate Genetics began in the Fall of 2021 due to overwhelming demand for shadowing sessions and informational interviews by exceptional pre-genetic counseling students. Real-world exposure to the field of genetic counseling is critical for entry into this competitive field, but it can be difficult to obtain—mainly because practicing genetic counselors are busy people! We wanted to have a deeper impact on the pre-GC students we were meeting, but in a way that could be wrapped into our business functions (after all, we’re a genetic counseling company—and we have patients to help!). And we knew we could do better—we just needed time to have engaging discussions and facilitate unique opportunities to further these students’ careers along the way.

We knew we could:

• help diversify the genetic counseling workforce

• give students a competitive advantage in grad school applications

• prepare students for the rigors of grad school

• leverage our hard-won knowledge to advance the field

• develop a pipeline of interested prospective employees for the future

• bring reproductive medicine knowledge into the genetic counseling community

What began as a small vision has grown quickly, benefiting from the dedication of our active interns and alumni, who have shaped this program into its current state, and continue to help us transform the field of genetic counseling for the next generation.