By: West S.B. No. 1247
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to admission to the Joint Admission Medical Program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subsections (b) and (c), Section 51.824,
Education Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) From each general academic teaching institution, the
council annually shall select for admission to the program at least
two eligible undergraduate students who are enrolled as sophomores
[freshmen] at that institution. The council shall allocate 10
percent of the total program openings on a rotation basis to private
or independent institutions of higher education. The council shall
allocate the remaining program openings to general academic
teaching institutions as the council determines to be appropriate
[in proportion to the average size of each institution's entering
freshman class during the four-year period preceding the
allocation].
(c) The council shall match each participating student with
appropriate internship programs offered by participating medical
schools during the summers immediately following the student's
[freshman,] sophomore[,] and junior years. A participating medical
school to which a participating student is matched under Subsection
(e) may require the student to participate in an internship program
offered by the medical school during the summer immediately
following the student's senior year.
SECTION 2. Subsections (a) and (c), Section 51.826,
Education Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) To be eligible for admission to the program or for
selection as a program alternate, an undergraduate student must:
(1) enroll at a general academic teaching institution
or a private or independent institution of higher education not
later than the first fall semester following the student's
graduation from high school;
(2) be a Texas resident for purposes of tuition under
Subchapter B, Chapter 54;
(3) except as provided by Subsection (c), successfully
complete at least 27 [15] semester credit hours during the [fall
semester of the] student's freshman year at the general academic
teaching institution or the private or independent institution of
higher education;
(4) apply for admission to the program not later than
September 1 [at the beginning] of the fall [spring] semester of the
student's sophomore [freshman] year at the general academic
teaching institution or the private or independent institution of
higher education; and
(5) meet criteria established by the council
regarding:
(A) minimum high school and undergraduate grade
point averages;
(B) financial need and any other indication of
economic disadvantage; and
(C) any other matter the council considers
appropriate.
(c) The council shall adopt rules to admit to the program or
to select as a program alternate an otherwise eligible
undergraduate student who, for good cause, has not successfully
completed the number of semester credit hours required under
Subsection (a)(3). The council may not admit to the program or
select as a program alternate an undergraduate student who has
successfully completed fewer than 18 [nine] semester credit hours.
SECTION 3. Subchapter V, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 51.8265 to read as follows:
Sec. 51.8265. PREADMISSION MENTORING AND ASSISTANCE.
(a) In order to maximize a student's potential for success in the
program, the council shall identify students who may be eligible to
participate in the program not later than the beginning of the first
fall semester following the student's graduation from high school.
(b) An identified student who expresses an interest in
participating in the program is entitled to the following
assistance during the student's freshman year:
(1) regular meetings with a program faculty director
to monitor the student's academic progress and advise the student
in academic course work and career choices; and
(2) tutoring in courses as necessary, to be paid with
program funds.
(c) A student who has applied for admission into the program
and who meets the eligibility criteria as provided by Section
51.826 is entitled to receive, during the fall semester of the
student's sophomore year, the assistance described by Subsection
(b) and a scholarship in an amount determined by the council.
SECTION 4. Subsection (a), Section 51.827, Education Code,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) To be eligible to continue participation in the program,
an undergraduate student who is admitted to the program must:
(1) meet criteria established by the council
regarding:
(A) courses taken and minimum grade point average
for those courses during enrollment at the general academic
teaching institution or the private or independent institution of
higher education;
(B) progress in those courses;
(C) achievement of an acceptable score on the
Medical College Admission Test or any equivalent examination taken
as a precondition for enrollment in or admission to a participating
medical school; and
(D) any other matter the council considers
appropriate;
(2) participate in:
(A) internship programs described by Section
51.824(c) in:
(i) the summers immediately following the
student's [freshman,] sophomore[,] and junior years; and
(ii) if required, the summer immediately
following the student's senior year; and
(B) any undergraduate or graduate mentoring
program required by the council; and
(3) exhibit intelligence, integrity, and personal and
emotional characteristics that are considered necessary for the
student to become an effective physician.
SECTION 5. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
an application for admission to the Joint Admission Medical Program
filed on or after the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2005.