A Howard Payne University student from Zephyr is moving closer to her goal of becoming a surgeon after earning admission to a competitive Texas program that can provide a direct route to medical school.
Bethany Blair, a junior biomedical science major at HPU, is participating in the Joint Admission Medical Program, or JAMP. The program was created by the Texas Legislature to help students across Texas pursue medical careers. It offers financial aid, advising, internships and Medical College Admission Test preparation. Students who successfully complete the program receive guaranteed acceptance into one of Texas’ 14 medical schools.
A competitive statewide opportunity
Blair was one of 100 students admitted to JAMP in 2026. Admission considers factors including grade-point average, test scores and satisfactory evaluations. The program’s website also says applicants are evaluated for “intelligence, integrity, and personal and emotional characteristics that are considered necessary for the student to become an effective physician.”
The selected students were placed into cohorts for on-site internships at medical schools across the state. Blair completed the first of two summer internships at Texas Tech School of Medicine in Lubbock. She will remain in the program during the final two years of her college degree.
“There were 14 of us from around Texas in the cohort in Lubbock,” Blair said. “I feel like I found my people there. We would hang out and study together.”
Watching medicine in practice
During the internship, Blair shadowed physicians and observed surgeries. The experience also gave her an opportunity to see how technology is being used in modern medicine.
“It was exciting to watch surgeries and see how technology is influencing the field,” she said. “I even got to watch a robot performing laparoscopic surgery.”
Blair hopes to become a surgeon. Her summer experience at Texas Tech was the first of the two internships included in her JAMP participation, giving her additional clinical exposure as she continues her undergraduate studies at Howard Payne.
Fourth HPU student accepted
Blair is the fourth Howard Payne student to enter JAMP. The university identified the other HPU participants as Hannah (Justice) White ’19, Emily Moran ’25 and Magaly Cervantes, who is a senior at HPU.
Dr. Kristen Hutchins, dean of HPU’s School of Science and Mathematics, said the four students have represented the university well while participating in the program.
“I am so proud of these bright young women,” she said. “JAMP is a lot of work with MCAT prep, extra training and evening coursework, but these students have committed the time and proven themselves successful. They are going to do great things in the future.”
Founded in 1889, Howard Payne University is a Christ-centered liberal arts university in Brownwood. The school offers more than 100 majors, minors and pre-professional programs through six schools and serves students at three locations.