After the departure of the sole pre-medical advisor on campus earlier this month, many students said they are worried about the limited career counseling resources for pre-med and pre-health majors.

Like many of Northwestern’s pre-med students, Weinberg senior Neeta Varshney has visited the university’s Academic Advising Center often over the past three years to gather information and advice about her planned career from John Lyons, the campus’ only pre-med/pre-health adviser.

After eight years at NU, Lyons left his position earlier this month to return to his East Coast home. With his departure, pre-med and pre-health students across campus said they are doubly concerned about their advising options — especially with many medical school applications due this season.

“It was always really hard to get an appointment with (Lyons),” Varshney said. “He was just completely overburdened.”

The center offers resources — including guidance on medical school applications and course selections — through workshops, medical school presentations and individual advising.

More than 1,200 students identify their majors as pre-med, said Susan Fox, director of the university’s Advising Center.

The center’s five-position staff — including one spot open for the pre-med adviser — supplements the advising provided through each undergraduate school.

Although applicants currently are being interviewed for Lyons’ pre-med/pre-health advising position, students said the massive workload is too much for just one adviser.

When Lyons served as the only adviser, he was “constantly swamped,” said Naveen Malik, a Communication senior on the pre-med track.

“He was a great pre-med adviser, but he was stretched so thin,” said Malik, who serves as the president of NU’s Undergraduate Pre-Dental Society.

She added that she hoped more than one person would be hired to replace Lyons upon the completion of the interviewing process.

“Northwestern needs to consider how they advise (pre-med students) with one adviser,” Malik said. “It’s inadequate.”

Varshney said an advising center with at least two pre-med/pre-health counselors would allow for more personalized student attention, more services and more opportunities to gather statistics on NU’s previous medical school applicants — such as GPA and where each student was accepted.

But hiring two specialized advisers to do the job isn’t within the university advising center’s power. Fox said the center is able to fund one adviser, but funding for that second position would have to be specifically requested from the university budget.

Stephen Fisher, associate provost for undergraduate education, admitted the demand for advising is “very heavy.”

But while Provost Lawrence Dumas is aware of the demand for additional advising, a second adviser for the center — which reports to the provost’s office — would be a “recurring expense,” Fisher said.

The decision to hire a second pre-med/pre-health adviser would have to be made during budget requests, Fisher said. Dumas, University President Henry Bienen and other financial decision makers would then decide whether finances for an additional hire would be available in the next fiscal year, which begins Sept. 1, Fisher added.

Students already are working on short-term remedies for the shortage of pre-med/pre-health advisers.

The newly formed pre-dental group, which focuses on raising awareness of pre-health careers, hopes to bring more assistance to students on campus by teaming with Associated Student Government, Malik said.

Jodi Anderson, a Weinberg junior who serves as chairwoman of ASG’s academic advising subcommittee, is leading the group’s efforts.

“Right now, we’re in the preliminary stages of research because it’s a complex issue,” Anderson said.

Some short-term possibilities include increased funding for resource materials and more communication with NU alumni in pre-med/pre-health fields, she added.

ASG Academic Vice President Prajwal Ciryam said the group needs to evaluate academic advising at other schools and compare them to NU. But ASG does have the immediate lobbying power to encourage an expansion of the center’s book collection and non-human resources, Ciryam said.

“In this transition period, at least if people had books, that would be helpful,” he said.

Varshney said more resources would be useful in the interim, but that they should serve only as a temporary solution.

In addition to more pre-med/pre-health advisers, students could form their own peer advising program, Varshney said.

After next quarter, the upperclassmen will have completed most of the steps to medical school acceptance. Upperclassmen could pass on their knowledge and experience to those just starting their premedical/pre-health track, she said.

“Students have a different perspective than advisers do,” Varshney said.

Reach Angela Tablac at [email protected].

Quick facts:

 More than 1,200 students identify their majors as pre-medical.

 Northwestern’s Advising Center has five positions on its staff, with one now vacant.

 Associated Student Government might help student groups lobby for more support.