One factor that makes admission so tough — nationally, roughly half of applicants are accepted — is that there are only 131 medical schools nationwide. But borderline applicants hoping to gain admission to a medical school, and even standout applicants looking to improve their odds, may soon have another option.
The wave of new medical schools represents the biggest increase since the 1960s and 1970s. Six new medical schools have applied for accreditation, six are in the process of applying for accreditation and 11 have announced their intention to apply.
Director of Health Professions Advising Glenn Cummings, who said he knew of “a dozen or so in the pipeline,” explained that many of the planned medical schools are targeting applicants who agree to practice in areas of high need.
“It wouldn’t be happening if these universities did not truly want to address the potential physician shortage in a way that helped to populate areas of the country where patients need more primary-care physicians,” he said.
But whether the rise in schools will actually ease acceptance rates will depend on the rate of increase of applicants, Cummings noted.
Cummings was also cautious in judging the quality of the new schools.
“Until we see how students at these schools do during their clinical years and when applying for residency, which is at least three years from now, it is difficult to offer any more assessment,” he explained.
Nevertheless, Cummings said that some of his advisees plan to apply to newly opened schools including The Commonwealth Medical College in Scranton, Pa., and Florida International University College of Medicine in Miami, Fla., each of which opened in fall 2009.
Some pre-med students expressed hesitation about applying to schools without established track records.
“As with any new institution, there may be a bit of trial and error at times at these schools,” Alana D’Alfonso ’11 said, though she added that she believes any medical school accredited by the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) can be considered to have “legitimate value.”
Michael Cheng ’11 said he was unsure whether the schools would accomplish their goal of filling positions in rural areas.
“Doctors typically seem to cluster in more urban and suburban areas,” he said. “I don’t think that opening new medical schools will solve the shortage of rural doctors.”
Cheng added that he also saw the importance of the new medical schools.
“Currently there is definitely a need for new medical schools, as many hospitals are filling their residency programs with foreign-born doctors,” Cheng said.
“This trend suggests that … there are relatively too few doctors being trained in this country,” he added.
Alexa Glencer ’10, another pre-med, said that the new schools were “a very positive development” because they will help to address the demographic challenges that come with retiring baby boomers.
“The opening of these new med schools is well overdue,” she said.
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