Over the past six years, fewer people have applied to medical school, leading to concern about the medical profession’s future. Despite the lower numbers, SMU’s pre-med advisers aren’t worried.
Last Wednesday, the Association of American Medical Colleges released figures showing a 4 percent decrease in the number of applicants from the previous year. Since the 1996 high of 46,968 applicants, there has been a nearly 20 percent decrease in 2002.
“With our nation facing new health challenges and a possible physician shortage, the apparent flagging interest in the medical profession, as reflected by the shrinking applicant pool over the last several years, has been cause for some concern,” said Jordan J. Cohen, president of the association.
Reasons for this application decline are unclear. Some experts attribute this decline to the high cost of tuition and to jobs in other fields that pay better.
The economy led to the decrease in medical applicants, said pre-med advisor Karen De Olivares. As in the past the economy weakened, medical applications tended to rise because medicine was seen as safe. More opportunities in other fields, has led to a decline in medical applicants De Olivares added.
“Medical school can take too much time and effort. With at least three years of residency, students are finding easier options,” said pre-med student Shiny Mathewkutty.
Minority applications have also suffered. There has been an 11 percent drop in minority applications since 1996 to 1997. The association says that the decline is due to affirmative action rollbacks in California, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. At this time, the organization is trying to reverse this trend.
Tuition is also a major concern. With tuition increasing almost every year, students are reluctant to go into medical school where they will spend seven to eight years before practicing. They often find themselves in debt.
De Olivares says that application numbers may soon rise. The number of people who took the Medical College Admission Test in 2002 suggests a 4 to 6 percent increase of applicants for 2003. These are statistics based on the number of students who are preparing to enter into medical school next year. There is an increase of 5.6 percent over last year with 57,573 MCAT examinations administered this year.
SMU’s statistics reflect with national statistics. Applications declined slightly in 2000 and 2001. Even with the decrease in applicants, the quality of those applying has risen. Applicants generally had higher average GPA and MCAT scores, which has made the applicant pool more competitive. De Olivares said the number of applicants may have decreased but it is the dedicated and highly interested students that tend to apply. This accounts for the increase in MCAT scores and average GPA in the past year.
“The average GPA and MCAT scores for those excepted to medical school has increased, even as the number of applicants have declined,” De Olivares said.
