Table 1 Medical student characteristics by desire to care primarily for an underserved or vulnerable population
From: Medical student volunteerism and interest in working with underserved and vulnerable populations
Answers to the question, ‘Do you plan to care primarily for an underserved or vulnerable population?’ | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
No n = 24 (%) | Maybe n = 67 (%) | Yes n = 30 (%) | P value | |
Characteristic | ||||
Age | 23.7 | 23.3 | 24.1 | 0.197 |
Sex (Female) | 9 (38) | 31 (46) | 17 (57) | 0.366 |
Race/Ethnicity (Nonwhite) | 3 (14) | 10 (16) | 8 (32) | 0.191 |
Hometown (Rural) | 12 (54) | 35 (53) | 17 (56) | 0.272 |
Active in religion/philosophy | 12 (55) | 35 (54) | 17 (57) | 0.976 |
At least one parent physician | 8 (35) | 12 (18) | 5 (17) | 0.214 |
Academic qualifications | ||||
Master’s degree | 1 (8) | 6 (9) | 6 (20) | 0.160 |
MCAT Average Score | 30.8 | 30.6 | 29.2 | 0.118 |
Undergraduate GPA Average | 3.78 | 3.77 | 3.76 | 0.914 |
Medical School Percentile Average | 62.6 | 50.9 | 44.7 | 0.065 |
Future plans | ||||
Long-term goals | 0.038* | |||
Primary care | 3 (16) | 10 (18) | 12 (40) | |
Other specialty/ Subspecialise | 11 (58) | 25 (45) | 6 (20) | |
Undecided | 5 (26) | 21 (38) | 12 (40) | |
Plan to locate in underserved area | 2 (8) | 20 (30) | 19 (63) | < 0.001* |
Finances | ||||
Undergraduate debt | 3,049 | 5,080 | 12,910 | 0.069 |
Anticipated medical school debt | 109,102 | 114,395 | 86,000 | 0.300 |
Anticipated total debt | 112,283 | 117,967 | 99,339 | 0.875 |
Belief that debt at graduation influence career choice | 8 (35) | 25 (38) | 6 (20) | 0.218 |
Volunteerism (composite scores out of 10) During medical school | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.6 | 0.588 |
Before medical school (premedical) | 2.1 | 3.2 | 4.3 | < 0.001* |
High school | 1.3 | 2.7 | 3.2 | 0.004* |
College | 3.0 | 4.6 | 5.3 | 0.008* |
After College | 1.9 | 2.0 | 3.8 | 0.010* |