Community and Rural Rotations Support Program

Community and Rural Rotations Support (CARRS) Program Goals

  • Provide financial support for students interested in rural practice

  • Offer the opportunity for health profession students to contribute to impacting health outcomes through community-based projects

  • Create a platform for rural community recruitment efforts

The CARRS Program

  • Offers a stipend to students who are participating in rural rotations and have an interest in entering rural practice after graduation.

  • Rotations must be scheduled or requested in one of the high risk/high need counties identified as CARRS Counties. These counties include: Boone, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Fayette, Hampshire, Lincoln, Logan, Mason, McDowell/Wyoming, Mingo, Ritchie, Roane, Wirt

  • The student is responsible for completing a community project with the guidance of a community mentor, like Health Sciences Technology Academy (HSTA) community research associates and county extension agents.

  • Students are paired with their community mentor before the rotation begins and the mentor connects the student to with a substantive community health project in the local community.

  • Projects are listed by county and when the student is completing the CARRS application they will be asked to provide specific information about their rotation and choose one project in the county where their rotation is scheduled. The student is also responsible for completing a written reflection of the student’s community experience and a brief evaluation after the rotation is complete.

  • CARRS is a program of the WVU Institute for Community and Rural Health (ICRH) and has support from the Schools of Dentistry and Medicine, on all campuses. The ICRH staff works with the community mentors and projects are identified and approved by ICRH staff as appropriate for health professional students to support a positive experience for all.

Application

The CARRS application process now offers quarterly submission deadlines. All applications submitted by the deadlines listed below will be reviewed and applicants contacted within one week.

Any applicant, from any of our four disciplines (medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and physician assistant) can apply at any time once their rural rotation is requested.

The CARRS application is now open and will remain open indefinitely with the following submission deadlines:

  • September 30

  • December 31

  • March 31

  • June 30

Eligibility Information

Third-year medical students who have already requested or scheduled their required four-week Rural Family Medicine Clerkship or Rural Track Internal Medicine rotation in one of our CARRS counties are now eligible to apply.

Dental, Pharmacy, and Physician Assistant students with a rural rotation requested or scheduled in a CARRS county are also encouraged to apply.

How to Apply:

  • Review the list of available projects by county.

  • Select one project to include with your CARRS application.

Stipend Information

Participants will receive their CARRS stipend through a third-party vendor after completing their project. The vendor will issue a 1099 form for tax purposes.

Please contact us with any questions about the CARRS Program and projects.