The council must run the program, select eligible students, match them to internships and medical schools, award scholarships and stipends, and support students; participating medical schools may not admit a student before council matching.
Sec. 51.824. COUNCIL DUTIES. (a) The council shall: (1) recruit eligible undergraduate students for admission to the program; (2) establish an application process for admitting eligible undergraduate students to the program; (3) evaluate applications for admission to the program according to the procedures for selecting participating students under Subsection (b) and for selecting program alternates under Section 51.8245; (4) monitor the implementation of the program; (5) assist in developing services to support and encourage the pursuit of a medical education by participating students and program alternates; (6) establish a process for participating students to: (A) be matched to an internship program as described by Subsection (c); (B) be matched to any required undergraduate mentoring program as described by Subsection (d); (C) apply for admission to participating medical schools; (D) be matched to a participating medical school as described by Subsection (e); and (E) enroll in that school; (7) award to participating students undergraduate scholarships and summer stipends, including a summer stipend for a student who is required to participate in an internship program in the summer immediately following the student's senior year; (8) award graduate scholarships to participating students; (9) enter into an agreement with each student admitted to the program, each program alternate, each participating medical school, and each general academic teaching institution or private or independent institution of higher education as required by this subchapter; (10) pursue opportunities to increase scholarship money allocated to participating students to at least 30 percent of the total amount appropriated for purposes of the program without impeding the implementation of other program functions and goals, including: (A) coordinating efforts with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to request additional legislative appropriations; (B) soliciting gifts, grants, and donations under Section 51.833; (C) collaborating with private foundations, corporations, and entities to secure supplemental funding; and (D) prioritizing increasing the amount of graduate medical scholarships over increasing the amount of other scholarships; (11) ensure that participating students are aware of available counseling and relief services; and (12) take any other action necessary to implement the program. (b) From each general academic teaching institution, the council annually shall select for admission to the program two eligible undergraduate students who are enrolled as sophomores at that institution. From each private or independent institution of higher education, the council annually shall select for admission to the program one eligible undergraduate student who is enrolled as a sophomore at that institution. The council shall allocate the remaining program openings to participating institutions as the council determines to be appropriate. If there are insufficient program openings to accommodate two students from each general academic teaching institution and one student from each private or independent institution of higher education, as appropriate to achieve the purpose of this subchapter the council shall select for admission to the program eligible sophomore-level students who are enrolled in the participating institutions, with not more than 15 percent of the total program openings for any year to be allocated to eligible sophomore-level students who are enrolled at private or independent institutions of higher education. (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 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. (d) The council shall match each participating student and each program alternate with any appropriate undergraduate mentoring program required of the student or alternate by the council. (e) During a participating student's senior year, the council shall match the student with an appropriate participating medical school as necessary to fill the percentage of enrollment capacity set aside by each medical school under the program. To the extent possible, the council shall accommodate the preferences of participating students regarding medical school placement. A participating medical school may not make an offer of admission to a participating student before the student is matched by the council to a medical school as described by this subsection. Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 605, Sec. 1, eff. June 11, 2001. Amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 922, Sec. 2, eff. June 20, 2003. Amended by: Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 356 (S.B. 1247), Sec. 1, eff. June 17, 2005. Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 995 (S.B. 1601), Sec. 1, eff. June 15, 2007. Acts 2025, 89th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1117 (H.B. 5154), Sec. 4, eff. June 20, 2025.