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How to Create a MMC

Jasmine DeJesus and Lauren Roehr

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What is a Military Medical Community (MMC)?

Ignites passion

Inspires and informs students about the field of military medicine

Campus Camaraderie

Build a strong local community for students interested in pursuing a military medical pathway

Broad Networking

Connects members with active duty/retired physicians, military recruiters, and current HPSP/USU students

SGT Muniz from Central Texas HPSP Recruiting Officers sharing about dental and medical HPSP

Former National MMC Speaker and Emergenecy Medicine Doc, Dr. DeLorenzo sharing to the MMC at UTSA

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Why Should YOU Want to Create a MMC?

Create a community on your campus that differs in atmosphere and what it has to offer

Filling a gap for knowledge of opportunities

Equipping yourself with the leadership skills needed as a military medical officer

Get a head start in soft skills you can expand on in your AMCAS experiences section

Build meaningful and long-lasting connections with professionals in your vicinity and virtually.

Gain insight on your specific career desires
LORs

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Step 1: Create an Executive Board

Talk to your friends/peers about your idea to start an MMC
Assign roles to everyone

E.g. President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Community Engagement Coordinator, Social Media Manager
Collaborate with your E-board to decide what their responsibilities are in each role

Can always start small and grow

Part of the MMC at UTSA Exec-Board giving back in downtown San Antonio.

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Step 2: Obtain a Faculty Advisor

Seek out a faculty advisor on campus to sponsor your chapter

E.g. Director of Veteran and Military Affairs (VMA) Office

Great if they have prior service or connections to military medicine, but not a requirement

Stop by your Veterans Affairs Office

Mostly needed to become a Registered Student Organization (RSO)

Faculty Advisor for MMC at UTSA. Did dissertation on the Sense of Belonging in Veteran Spaces. He has been a fantastic advisor.

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Step 3: Draft By-Laws

Using the MMC template from the MMC website, draft bylaws for your organization with your executive board

Collaborate when deciding responsibilities

MMC bylaws template has descriptions for roles, you can adapt to fit your organizations needs
Bylaws Template

There are templates on the MMC website for starting both undergrad and medical school chapters!

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Step 4: Register your Organization

Register your organization with your university’s office of student organizations
Use bylaws template
Register with MMC at USUHS to be on their roster of MMCs
Register with MMC at USUHS by emailing: mmc@usuhs.edu

Your university will probably have a website like the one above where they will be information and steps on how to register your MMC

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Step 5: Social Media

Create socials for your chapter
Make an email for your organization
Post about your meetings and upcoming events

Posts, reels, stories, etc.

Screenshot of MMC at UTSA Instagram. Note: name, specification, logo, simplicity, mission, calendar, linktree

Screenshot of MMC at UK GroupMe info page. Can use something like GroupMe as a communication channel for events, meetings, etc.

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Step 6: Start Hosting Events

Start planning events and hosting

General Meetings, Guest Speakers, Socials, Volunteering, Fundraising, Tabling, HPSP or USUHS Info Sessions, etc.
Try to give students 1-2 week notice w/ RSVP

Engage members by asking their opinions for events
Follow university policies
Take pictures and upload them on social media
Share growth with the MMC at USUHS
Remember to share info about the monthly National MMC meetings on your socials and communication channels

MMC at UK hosted Dr. Erin Snyder, Navy Emergency Medicine doctor currently stationed at Camp Lejeune

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You can attend events on campus as a RSO and support students outside of the military/healthcare capacity, just like any other RSO. MMC at UTSA volunteering to cheer for runners at the Diploma Dash, raising money for UTSA student scholarships.

Utilize connections made at monthly national MMC meetings. This was MMC at UTSA doing mask-making and listening to Dr. Stephens from PSCOM speak of his research.

Use AMEDD Office and guidance for events like suture clinics, HPSP Info Sessions, TCCC, etc.

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Build connections with other RSOs for recruitment sake and camaraderie. It’s not a competition!

Table at a consistent time each week throughout the semester to build rapport. You can also fundraise for a cause. Be creative!

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Building your AMCAS Activities Section

Use the MMC mission and vision statements to develop the activities section of your application

Describe the skills you developed and how that has left an impact on your campus

Utilize the AAMC pre-med competencies to guide development of your experiences description

Just a few of the AAMC pre-med competencies starting and running your own MMC encompass

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Screenshot from YouTube, for visual example.

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Experience Type: Extracurricular Activities – Leadership�Experience Name: Founder/President, Military Medical Community�Organization Name: Military Medical Community at the University of Texas at San Antonio�Most Meaningful Experience: Potentially Yes

Experience Description: Founded and developed a Military Medical Community chapter to connect students interested in military medicine, healthcare, and service. Built the organization from the ground up by recruiting members, developing an executive board, planning educational and service events, coordinating speakers, and creating opportunities for mentorship, research, and community engagement. Working with students from different academic and professional backgrounds has strengthened my communication, leadership, and ability to collaborate toward a shared mission. Through MMC, I have learned that leadership is not simply directing others, but creating opportunities for people to grow and serve.

Example of AMCAS Experience

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Experience Type: Extracurricular Activities – Leadership�Experience Name: Founder/President, Military Medical Community�Organization Name: Military Medical Community at the University of Texas at San Antonio�Most Meaningful Experience: Potentially Yes

Experience Description: Founded and developed a Military Medical Community chapter to connect students interested in military medicine, healthcare, and service. Built the organization from the ground up by recruiting members, developing an executive board, planning educational and service events, coordinating speakers, and creating opportunities for mentorship, research, and community engagement. Working with students from different academic and professional backgrounds has strengthened my communication, leadership, and ability to collaborate toward a shared mission. Through MMC, I have learned that leadership is not simply directing others, but creating opportunities for people to grow and serve.

Example of AMCAS Experience

But What ‘Competencies’ Are You Actually Gaining, According to the AAMC?

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Service Orientation	MMC centers on service, healthcare, and supporting others	Organizing volunteer opportunities and community service
Social Skills	You interact with students, physicians, military professionals, faculty, and organizations	Recruiting members and coordinating speakers
Teamwork	You build and operate an executive board	Delegating responsibilities and working toward events together
Oral Communication	You present the organization and communicate its mission	General meetings, presentations, recruiting, guest speakers
Written Communication	You create emails, proposals, applications, flyers, agendas, and organizational documents	Chapter proposals, sponsorship requests, event communications
Reliability & Dependability	Members depend on you to keep the chapter functioning	Planning events, following through with commitments
Resilience & Adaptability	Starting a new organization inevitably involves setbacks and changing plans	Adjusting events, recruiting challenges, and building systems
Capacity for Improvement	You continually evaluate what MMC needs and improve the chapter	Creating new programs, refining events, developing leadership positions
Critical Thinking	You have to identify problems and determine how to solve them	Figuring out recruitment, funding, programming, and organizational structure

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Understanding Others	You work with people with different goals and backgrounds	Learning what members want from MMC and creating opportunities accordingly
Ethical Responsibility to Self/Others	You have to make decisions that affect members and the organization	Fair leadership, transparent opportunities, responsible event planning
Knowledge of the Healthcare System	MMC exposes you to military healthcare pathways and professionals	Learning about military medicine, USU, HPSP, ROTC, etc.
Scientific Inquiry	Research opportunities can become part of MMC programming	Connecting students with research opportunities and discussions

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Understanding Others	You work with people with different goals and backgrounds	Learning what members want from MMC and creating opportunities accordingly
Ethical Responsibility to Self/Others	You have to make decisions that affect members and the organization	Fair leadership, transparent opportunities, responsible event planning
Knowledge of the Healthcare System	MMC exposes you to military healthcare pathways and professionals	Learning about military medicine, USU, HPSP, ROTC, etc.
Scientific Inquiry	Research opportunities can become part of MMC programming	Connecting students with research opportunities and discussions

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Understanding Others	You work with people with different goals and backgrounds	Learning what members want from MMC and creating opportunities accordingly
Ethical Responsibility to Self/Others	You have to make decisions that affect members and the organization	Fair leadership, transparent opportunities, responsible event planning
Knowledge of the Healthcare System	MMC exposes you to military healthcare pathways and professionals	Learning about military medicine, USU, HPSP, ROTC, etc.
Scientific Inquiry	Research opportunities can become part of MMC programming	Connecting students with research opportunities and discussions

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Pre-med competency	How creating MMC develops it	Example evidence
Understanding Others	You work with people with different goals and backgrounds	Learning what members want from MMC and creating opportunities accordingly
Ethical Responsibility to Self/Others	You have to make decisions that affect members and the organization	Fair leadership, transparent opportunities, responsible event planning
Knowledge of the Healthcare System	MMC exposes you to military healthcare pathways and professionals	Learning about military medicine, USU, HPSP, ROTC, etc.
Scientific Inquiry	Research opportunities can become part of MMC programming	Connecting students with research opportunities and discussions

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Tips and Tricks

Use Google Calendar for import and export
Keep all usernames and passwords, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), Attendance List, etc. organized for ease at hand off
Use this time to grow your leadership skills
Contact local AMEDD Offices for people to host HPSP Info Sessions, Suture Clinics, Etc.
Don’t be afraid to reach out for help from your university, advisor, or peer members
Contact local medical school’s Military Health Interest Groups
Do joint events with other pre-health organizations

Example: MMC at UK has a Sharepoint with all of the executive board information needed

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Contacts

For administrative and structural support:

Dr. Cox, Director of Military Medical Communities and Assistant Dean of Recruitment at the Uniformed Services University (USU): james.cox@usuhs.edu

Dr. Noel, Army Representative MMC Faculty Advisory Board: mary.a.noel5.mil@army.mil

Dr. Cabrera, Navy Representative MMC Faculty Advisory Board: orlando.g.cabrera.mil@health.mil

Dr. Mikles, Air Force Representative MMC Faculty Advisory Board: bethany.m.mikles.mil@health.mil

Mr. Brendan Jackson, Admissions and Recruitment Analyst, brendan.jackson.ctr@usuhs.edu

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Contacts

For the student perspective and advice on running a chapter:

Lauren Roehr, University of Kentucky Chapter President: lauren.roehr05@gmail.com

Jasmine DeJesus, University of Texas at San Antonio Chapter President: jasminedejesus019@gmail.com

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