Rebekah Cole Ph.D., M.Ed.

Education

Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA - Ph.D. Counseling
College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA - M.Ed. School Counseling
College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA - BA English, minor in Hispanic Studies
Stanford University, Stanford, CA - Certificate, Foundations of Data Science

Biography

Dr. Rebekah Cole is the Acting Assistant Dean of Academic Success at the Uniformed Services University (USU), where she oversees initiatives to enhance medical student achievement, resilience, and readiness. She directs the Academic Success Program, which provides comprehensive academic support to ensure that future military physicians are fully prepared for the intellectual and operational demands of battlefield medicine and service in the Military Health System.

Dr. Cole brings more than 15 years of experience in higher education as a faculty member, academic leader, and counselor educator. Before joining USU, she served as Program Director for the MSE School Counseling Program at Arkansas State University, where she led curriculum development, student success initiatives, and retention efforts for more than 500 graduate students. Over her career, she has designed and taught more than 20 graduate-level courses and contributed extensively to university governance through leadership in assessment, accreditation, and admissions.

A nationally recognized educational researcher, Dr. Cole has authored over 90 peer-reviewed publications and delivered more than 50 presentations at national, international, and regional conferences. She has secured over $2 million in competitive grant funding to support research and educational innovation. Dr. Cole currently serves as Chair of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine’s Educational Research Interest Group, a national leadership role that supports the advancement of rigorous scholarship in medical education.

Career Highlights: Positions, Projects, Deployements, Awards and Additional Publications

Cole, R. & Remondelli, M.H. (2025). The time is now: Confronting the mental health challenges of future Large-Scale Combat Operations. Military Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usaf156

Cole, R., Shumaker, J., & Rudinsky, S. (2025). “It’s there and you’re changed forever”: Military physicians' perceptions of moral injury. Journal of Military Ethics. https://doi.org/10.1080/15027570.2025.2492929

Flash, Z., Tamburo, A., & Cole, R. (2025). Integrating international students into military medical education and training. Military Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usaf107

Crawford, K., Farrell, M., Barilla, A., Hildreth, A.F., & Cole, R. (2025). Beyond command: Exploring the dynamics of the Military Medical Officer and Non-Commissioned Officer relationship in military medicine. Journal of Special Operations Medicine. https://doi.org/10.55460/UH66-Y9QW

Cole, R., Crawford, K., Olmstead, M., Vojta, L., Schwartz, J., & Rudinsky, SL. (2025). The relationship between the Military Medical Officer and Commanding Officer: Implications for education and training. Military Medicine, 190(1-2). https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usae337

Cole, R. (2024). Validation of experiential learning at USU. Military Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usae435

Cole, R., Pearce, E., Hildreth, A., Xiao, R., & Vojta, L. (2024). The impact of a pre-hospital simulation on medical students’ resourcefulness, personal growth initiative, and uncertainty tolerance. Academic Emergency Medicine Education & Training. https://doi.org/10.1002/aet2.11032

Cole, R., Shen, C., Shumaker, J., Matthews, K., Brown, Z., Cuestas, J., & Rudinsky, SL. (2024). The impact of simulation-based training on medical students’ whole blood transfusion abilities. Transfusion. https://doi.org/10.1111/trf.17906

Cole, R., Durning, S., Shen, C., Reamy, B., & Rudinsky, SL. (2024). Civilian and military medical school graduates’ readiness for deployment: Areas of strength and opportunities for growth. Military Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usae167

Cole, R., Egan, S., Schwartz, J., Rudinsky, S.L. (2023). The impact of high-fidelity simulations on medical student readiness. Military Medicine, 188(3), 7-14. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usac382

Representative Bibliography

Cole, R. (2025). Balancing research and realism: Strategies for unobtrusive evaluation during high-fidelity simulation. Medical Education. https://doi.org/10.1111/medu.15723

Cole, R. (2025). Beyond mentorship: Reframing sponsorship as a critical catalyst in health professions education research. Advances in Health Sciences Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-025-10459-y

Cole, R. (2025). Building a program of research in medical education: Recommendations from the professional literature. Medical Education Online. https://10.1080/10872981.2025.2546869

Cole, R., Bowling, C., Ren, X & Vojta, L. (2024). Simulation-based education’s impact on medical students’ tolerance of uncertainty: A grounded theory study. Medical Teacher, 1-5. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159X.2024.2438787

Cole, R., Hildreth, A., Pickering, R., & Rudinsky, S.L. (2024). Peer teachers’ professional identity development during a prehospital simulation: A grounded theory study. Simulation in Healthcare. doi:10.1097/SIH.0000000000000791

Cole, R., & Bronstein, MV. (2024). Stress and resilience among military medical students completing a high- fidelity educational deployment simulation. International Journal of Healthcare Simulation. https://doi.org/10.54531/bhtx8590

Cole, R., Wagner, R., Egan, S.J. Van Shufflin, M.W. & Tilley, L. (2023). Military medical student experiences during a Prolonged Casualty Care simulation. Journal of Military and Veteran Health. https://doi-ds.org/doilink/10.2023-98438352/JMVH Vol 31 No 4

Cole, R., Steffins, K., Flash, Z., Conley, S., & Givens, M. (2023). The impact of progressive simulation-based training on tourniquet application. Journal of Special Operations Medicine. doi:10.55460/X6XO-RVXC

Cole, R., Herman, S., Hughes, J., & Rudinsky, S. (2023). The Military Medical Officer’s current day professional identity: An enhanced model. Military Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usad094

Cole, R., Durning, S., Reamy, B., Stewart, H., Williamson, S., Rudinsky, SL. (2023). A Comparison of HPSP and USU graduates’ preparation for residency. Military Medicine, 188(2) 98-105. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usac437