To address the physician shortage in rural Missouri, the University of Missouri School of Medicine established the Rural Scholars Program with the goal of exposing medical students to rural medicine, encouraging them to return to rural areas for practice. The Rural Scholars Program also supports students academically, as stress, anxiety, and burnout occur during medical school, well before professional practice, especially during the transition from preclinical to clinical training. This mixed methods study examines how Rural Scholars' perceived readiness for clerkship training evolves over time and discusses students' experiences transitioning from preclinical to clinical training within two different clerkship structures -- traditional block and longitudinal integrated clerkships. Seven participants were interviewed, and it was found that the transition to clinical training is stressful, chaotic, and discombobulating, but also exciting; overall, transition experiences to clinical training are positive. Students in longitudinal integrated clerkships follow a J-curve trajectory in performance and readiness during their clinical training year. Traditional block clerkship students also experience a dip in perceived readiness at the start of a new clerkship. Previous clinical experience, academic preparation, and support are shown to be the most common factors associated with perceived readiness for clerkship and positive transition experience. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]