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Medical school bias revealed
Amelia Hill, education correspondent
Sunday March 27, 2005
The Observer
School-leavers are less likely to receive an offer of a place at medical school if they are male, over 18 and come from a non-white or lower socio-economic background.
The striking disadvantages facing some applicants - and the huge advantage of applying early to medical school - is revealed in new research to be presented at the Royal Economic Society's annual conference.
'There is a pool of applicants who are at a disadvantage when it comes to receiving an offer yet whose prior qualifications are as good as other, successful candidates,' said Wiji Arulampalam, co-author of the survey, Who Gets Admission Offers in UK Medical Schools?
Article continues
The study examined all applications made to UK medical schools in 1996 and 1997. In each of these years about 9,500 applicants made a total of 44,500 separate applications. On average, 41 per cent received no offer from a medical school at all while 59 per cent received at least one offer.
Men, however, made up 48 per cent of applicants but 54 per cent received no offers at all. White students made 63 per cent of applications, and 72 per cent received at least one offer.
Applicants from a professional background made up 34 per cent of all applicants, but only 29 per cent of those had no offers.
The survey also found that around 40 per cent of applicants were aged over 18 but only 30 per cent of this group received an offer. In terms of geographical location, applicants living in London and the South-East made up nearly 40 per cent of all applications.
According to experts, there will soon be a deficit of doctors in Europe, a finding that has led to government-supported inquiries into the causes and potential causes for the problem. The NHS Plan 2000 said that 1,000 more medical places needed to be found, meaning the total medical school intake will have doubled over a 10-year period from 1997.
Amelia Hill, education correspondent
Sunday March 27, 2005
The Observer
School-leavers are less likely to receive an offer of a place at medical school if they are male, over 18 and come from a non-white or lower socio-economic background.
The striking disadvantages facing some applicants - and the huge advantage of applying early to medical school - is revealed in new research to be presented at the Royal Economic Society's annual conference.
'There is a pool of applicants who are at a disadvantage when it comes to receiving an offer yet whose prior qualifications are as good as other, successful candidates,' said Wiji Arulampalam, co-author of the survey, Who Gets Admission Offers in UK Medical Schools?
Article continues
The study examined all applications made to UK medical schools in 1996 and 1997. In each of these years about 9,500 applicants made a total of 44,500 separate applications. On average, 41 per cent received no offer from a medical school at all while 59 per cent received at least one offer.
Men, however, made up 48 per cent of applicants but 54 per cent received no offers at all. White students made 63 per cent of applications, and 72 per cent received at least one offer.
Applicants from a professional background made up 34 per cent of all applicants, but only 29 per cent of those had no offers.
The survey also found that around 40 per cent of applicants were aged over 18 but only 30 per cent of this group received an offer. In terms of geographical location, applicants living in London and the South-East made up nearly 40 per cent of all applications.
According to experts, there will soon be a deficit of doctors in Europe, a finding that has led to government-supported inquiries into the causes and potential causes for the problem. The NHS Plan 2000 said that 1,000 more medical places needed to be found, meaning the total medical school intake will have doubled over a 10-year period from 1997.
