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Contact: Media Relations Officer
AAMC Press Room
Oct. 28-31, 2000, Hyatt Regency Chicago
312-565-4270, Skyway 261

Embargoed for Release
12:00 p.m., EST, Oct. 25, 2000

U.S. Medical School Applicants Still Exceed Available Positions

Underrepresented Minority Applicants Increase for the First Time Since 1996

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Washington, D.C., October 25, 2000 -- Slightly more than 37,000 individuals applied to U.S. medical schools for the 2000-2001 school year, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) reported at a briefing today in Washington, D.C. Although this figure is 3.6 percent lower than the number of applicants last year, it remains well over twice the number of available positions offered.

"In spite of the ever-expanding list of career options available to young people today, especially in the burgeoning Internet economy, medical schools continue to attract large numbers of gifted individuals who are interested in becoming doctors," said AAMC President Jordan J. Cohen, M.D. "When one looks at Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) scores and grade-point averages (GPA) -- two of the many factors used to evaluate candidates -- the quality of those who are applying keeps getting better."

In 2000, the average GPA for medical school matriculants is 3.6, continuing an upward trend since the 1980s. MCAT scores for each of the testing categories (verbal reasoning, physical sciences, and biological sciences) are either on par or better than last year.

The percentage of underrepresented minority applicants increased for the first time since 1996 to 4,267, or 1.9 percent above 1999. The number of underrepresented minorities that matriculated in 2000 remained approximately the same. The AAMC classifies underrepresented minorities as black, Native American, Mexican American/Chicano, and Mainland Puerto Rican.

According to the AAMC, several factors may be contributing to the decline in medical school applicants. They include the:

• relatively strong economy and the increasing variety of exciting and intellectually challenging professional opportunities outside the traditional career choices;
• natural ebb and flow of interest in professional schools in general;
• perceived loss of physician autonomy due to recent changes in the health care marketplace;
• continued backlash to affirmative action efforts; and
• concern over the high levels of educational debt typically required to complete medical training.

Nationwide, 16,303 students entered medical school, a slight increase from the 16,221 last year. As it has for the past 20 years, the number of matriculating first-year medical students has remained roughly the same.

Males

Overall, 19,842 males applied to medical school in 2000, a drop of almost 6 percent. The number of matriculating males held relatively steady at 8,830. The number of white males applying to medical school dropped for the fourth year in a row to 12,702, a decline of 6.2 percent. The number of white male applicants is the lowest since 1990. The number of matriculating white males dropped 1.2 percent to 5,786. Alternatively, the number of underrepresented minority male applicants increased 4 percent to 1,696, the first increase in three years. The number of underrepresented males matriculating increased 7.4 percent to 758. Black male applicants increased 5 percent to 1,026, with 426 matriculating, an increase of over 11 percent over 1999. The number of Native American, Mainland Puerto Rican, and Mexican American/Chicano individuals applying to medical school this year increased. Except for Mexican American/Chicano, the number of matriculants in these groups also increased.

Females

The number of females applying to medical school declined only slightly to 17,295, down from 17,433 in 1999. The number of women matriculants totaled 7,473, up from 7,412. White female applicants dropped 1 percent, to 9,945, with 4,545 matriculating, an increase of 2.8 percent. The number of underrepresented minority female applicants increased slightly to 2,571, or 0.5 percent. Underrepresented minority female matriculants dropped 5.4 percent to 971. Black female applicants dropped 2.8 percent to 1,912, with 665 matriculating, a decline of 10 percent. Native American, Mainland Puerto Rican, and Mexican American/Chicano women applicants and matriculants all increased this year. To attend the briefing or to request copies of the complete data tables, contact Jennifer Bush at 202-828-0041.

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The Association of American Medical Colleges represents the 125 accredited U.S. medical schools; the 16 accredited Canadian medical schools; some 400 major teaching hospitals, including 74 Veterans Administration medical centers; 91 academic and professional societies representing nearly 88,000 faculty members; and the nation's 67,000 medical students and 102,000 residents.

Additional information about the AAMC and U.S. medical schools and teaching hospitals available at www.aamc.org/newsroom