SF Mentoring (SFM) stands for "savoir faire," which colloquially means proper upbringing.
SFM is an organization run by medical student volunteers designed to help college students pursue their dreams of attending medical school. Applicants to medical schools are much more diverse than ever, with many applying in college, after a gap year, or even from another career. Additionally, applicants have different target schools, with a variety of allopathic and osteopathic programs to choose from.
Co-founders (from left to right): Kevin Yang, Lazarus Zamora, Awais Paracha, Michael Lugo, Rohan Das, Zohair Siddiqui
In June of 2020, Rohan Das, Michael Lugo, Awais Paracha, Zohair Siddiqui, Kevin Yang, and Lazarus Zamora founded SF Mentoring at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. At this time many opportunities were shut down to college undergraduates due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and safety measures. This group of medical students recognized the loss of interaction undergraduates would suffer. Hence, they decided as a collective to start their own organization, focused on mentoring pre-medical students through an online medium. SF stands for “Savoir Faire,” which means “proper upbringing” in French, capturing the sentiment our mentors share as they guide premedical students through the medical school admissions process.
The success of SF Mentoring at Saint Louis University soon spread to other states in the Midwest and East Coast; medical students and pre-medical undergraduates alike would join as mentor and mentee, respectively. By 2022, SF Mentoring had expanded its members from a group of twenty to over two hundred. Following this growth, we encourage our forthcoming physicians to stand true to our ideals and principles of promoting a culture of passing the torch and sending the elevator back down. We strive to provide guidance and better prepare the future generation of physicians with a clear path to achieve their dreams. We hope to see SF Mentoring continue to prosper and grow with like-minded individuals who share the same vision.
2022-2023 Leadership
Executive Director - Claire Schroll
Matching & Onboarding - Edward Gardner
Outreach & Expansion - Jenny Blasius
Recruitment - Helen Shung
Mentor/Mentee Relations - Shalaka Nimmagadda
Social Media - Riley Wolk
2021-2022 Leadership
Executive Director - Joshua Kim
Matching & Onboarding - Nikita Peramsetty
Outreach & Expansion - Nicholas Wu
Recruitment - Girija Vaidya
Mentor/Mentee Relations - Osha Chesnutt-Perry
Social Media - Julia Hughes
2020-2021 Leadership - Founding Board
Executive Director - Rena Wang
Matching & Onboarding - Kevin Yang, Michaella Nasr
Outreach & Expansion - Abdi Abud, Evan Lin
Recruitment - Awais Paracha, Ali Abid
Mentor/Mentee Relations - Lazarus Zamora, Ivana Massabki
Data Analytics - Michael Lugo, Annabel Engelhardt
Website Director - Zohair Siddiqui
Social Media - Annabel Engelhardt
Rohan Das, Humza Rehman
Head Article Writer (2022-Present) - Joshua Kim
Backend & Website Management (2021-Present), Writing Services (Qalam) Director (2020-Present) - Ali Abid
Hi! My name is Meha and I am currently an M1 at SLU but originally am from the suburbs of Chicago. I graduated from Nova Southeastern University with majors in Behavioral Neuroscience and Biology. In my free time, I love to go on run, read, cook, and drink coffee! I am excited to help you through the pre-medical process. I look forward to getting to know you!
Hi! I’m Ethan and I’m an M1 at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. I graduated from Loyola University Chicago in 2022 where I majored in music and minored in Spanish. In my free time, I played mellophone in Loyola's pep band and used to play in the Chicago Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra.
My name is Rachel, and I'm an M1 and Saint Louis University School of Medicine. I graduated from Saint Louis University last spring, where I majored in biology and minored in Spanish. I am from the Chicago suburbs, and I love to run, bake, and go for hikes.
Hi! My name is Abby, and I am a first year medical student at SLU. I'm from the STL area and graduated with a degree in neuroscience from Saint Louis University. I'm a huge foodie so in my free time, I love to try new recipes and visit new restaurants and coffee shops. Hopefully, I can provide you with whatever support, advice, and guidance you might be looking for!
Hi I’m Cayden! I went to Mizzou for undergrad and majored in Biology and Psychology. I am from Saint Louis though and am happy to be back in the area at SLU School of Medicine! In my free time I love spending time with friends and family, trying new restaurants, and going for walks and runs!
Hi! My name is Olivia Rose, and I am a first year medical student at SLU! I am from St. Louis, but I went to Rockhurst University for undergrad which is in Kansas City. I enjoy hanging out with friends/family, trying new restaurants, and traveling! Looking forward to getting to know you!