Should medical students be selected only from recent school-leavers who have studied science?

Abstract

This study was undertaken to investigate the apparently widespread belief that in order to be successful at medical school, aspiring candidates must have a sound academic background based predominantly on the study of the natural sciences, be school-leavers aged about 18 (in the non-college educational environments such as Australia or the United Kingdom) and preferably be men. The demographic background and prior academic achievement of individual students entering the University of Newcastle Medical School between 1978 and 1989 has been reviewed and compared with their progress in medical studies. The data show that in the Newcastle medical school environment there is no significant correlation between outcome and previous study of any of the natural sciences. However, significant correlations between outcome and performance in the humanities in general, and English in particular, were found. In this regard a weak background in these subjects correlated with an increased tendency not to complete the medical course. There were no significant correlations found between outcome and age at entry, sex or levels of prior academic achievement (within the top 10% achievement band studied). In summary, the study offers no support for the current selection criteria dominating medical school admissions processes.

Risk of Attritionfrom Master of Science in Pharmacy Degree Program: 15-year Predictive Evaluation.

“…31 The impact of age on attrition at medicine was also a subject of analyses of two studies performed in the United States 43,44 and one in Australia. 45 The results of these studies give no coherent confirmation that a student's age is of significant predictive importance when predicting adverse learning outcomes. 37 As with gender, also evaluation of the influence of age on entry on the risk of attrition during studies at the pharmacy department, requires further analysis.…”

Can we Improve on how we Select Medical Students?

“…There are recognized drawbacks to the use of school exam performance even as a measure of intellectual competence. One study has shown that a major causal determinant of A level results is social class, independent of ability 4 , and some would-be medical students elect to focus on sciences for their school leaving exams because very high marks are more easily achieved in the physical sciences than in the humanities 5 . The conviction that only exam results give valid and reliable data has been trenchantly dismissed as à seductive but fallacious' belief in the precision of quantitative tests 6 .…”

Examination of Relationships of Scores Obtained in Grades 10 and 12 with the Entry and Success in Undergraduate Medical Education

“…9 Similarly, Neame et al found no significant correlations between outcome and levels of prior academic achievement, and their study did not support selection of medical students in University of Newcastle Medical School only from recent school-leavers who have studied science. 10 Colins did not find relationship between academic achievement as reflected by marks in a national examination and scores in the panel interview, the group exercise, or the school principal's report. 11 However, they found significant inter-correlations between the panel interview, group exercise and school report.…”