A Holistic, Data-Driven Approach to Diversifying Alpha Omega Alpha (AΩA) Honor Society Electees

Recently, some medical schools eliminated their Alpha Omega Alpha (AΩA) chapters because of concerns that AΩA academic criteria led to bias in student selection. In 2020, the AΩA board changed the constitution to permit individual member schools to determine how their electees would be chosen. Thus, the relative weight of AΩA's selection criteria could be defined by the individual schools, allowing for a more holistic approach to selection. This study at a single large private medical school examines student AΩA electee rates before and after the implementation of holistic review using an institutional platform, MyPortfolio (MP; Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA), to holistically select electees. A cross-sectional study design was used to assess demographic data of medical students considered for AΩA membership election between 2016 and 2025 and compared pre-MP (2016-2020, N = 220) with post-MP (2021-2025, N = 270) electees. Chi-square analyses demonstrated statistically significant increases in the representation of racially and ethnically underrepresented in medicine (URiM) students (2.73% to 10.05%, p < .01), first-generation students (0% to 6.27%, χ²(1, N = 491) = 12.48, p < .001), and students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds (12.73% to 21.77%, χ²(1, N = 491) = 6.21, p < .001). The study found that a standardized platform, such as MP, can function to perform a holistic review of AΩA electees in our college. These findings highlight that a more equitable AΩA election may be achieved using a holistic review and improving professional opportunities for medical students of all backgrounds.