Our mission: to empower and equip SJV pre-medical students to become excellent physicians.
Who We Are
Primetime is a mentorship program for pre-medical students from the California Central Valley (also known as the San Joaquin Valley "SJV"), led by medical and pre-medical students. Through individual mentorship, seminars, and online resources, we offer students the tools they need to succeed in the arduous process of becoming a medical student. Our goal is to offer support and guidance so that we can all grow into excellent and innovative physicians who will soon be caring for our Valley, while forming a strong and supportive community along the way.
Events
Our primary program runs from March - May and includes a virtual seminar series, one-on-one mentorship, group mentorship, and in-person events. We also offer ad hoc mock interviews, application reviews, speaking events based on medical student availability, and, newly, clinical skills workshops on pertinent health conditions in the SJV for pre-medical students with limited clinical experience.
History
Primetime was started in 2022 by a group of University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) medical students from the San Joaquin Valley Program in Medical Education (SJV PRIME), a track at UCSF tailored to train physicians for the Central Valley. These students collaborated on a joint event with the University of California, Merced to host mentorship for pre-med students. When then event was so successful, they continued on the program which quadrupled in size to 100 mentees and 30 mentors in 2023. We launched our pre-medical student leadership team in 2023, consisting of students from the Central Valley who continue events from May - February. Primetime has continued to be a strong force in the community, serving almost 70 pre-medical students in 2025 and branching our efforts through tailored clinical skills workshops targeting pertinent health conditions in the SJV. In 2025, we provided 30 pre-medical students the opportunity to engage in an enriching workshop consisting of 5 different clinical skills, Stop the Bleed training, Immigrant Health & History-Taking, Intro to Auscultation & Vital Signs, Trauma & Suturing, and Narcan Administration & Airway Management, with an overwhelmingly positive response. Primetime intends to carry this mission forward in 2026 and beyond.
Thank you, mentors and mentees!
Primetime is made possible entirely by student volunteers, including medical students who give their time to guide the next generation of Valley physicians and pre-medical students who volunteer to create and maintain the logistics of our community.