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BackgroundHumanism in Medicine Initiative (HIMI), an extracurricular program at Ohio State University College of Medicine (OSUCOM) with 27 subgroups, fosters the humanities. Stress and burnout among first- and second-year medical students are prevalent across the United States. Solutions for stress among first- and second-year medical students have been proposed, but no gold standard exists. The relationship of humanism with stress and burnout has yet to be described in the literature. ObjectiveThis study investigates the relationship between participation in the HIMI and stress, burnout, and academic success among first- and second-year medical students. MethodsFirst- and second-year medical students enrolled at OSUCOM between August 2018 and August 2019 were recruited. Attendance in the HIMI and membership records were used to measure their participation. Curricular examination scores and those on Step 1 of United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) were used to measure academic success. Stress and burnout were measured using the Maslach Burnout Inventory and the Perceived Stress Scale. ResultsIn total, 412 students were enrolled with 362 (87%) students participating in HIMI. Those with high participation were more often Black, Asian, female, or with a humanities undergraduate major compared to the overall study population. There were significant relationships between Gold Humanism Honors Society (GHHS) induction and participation of first- and second-year medical students in service- (χ21=5.8, P