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1st appeared
6 October
1999 UC Task Force to Examine Decline in Minority Medical School Enrollment The University of California announced yesterday that it is establishing a task force to examine declines in the enrollment of first-year underrepresented students at the university's five medical schools. Figures released yesterday show a 12.5 percent drop from last year in the number of underrepresented minorities entering UC’s medical schools this fall. Only 63 (11 percent) of the UC system’s 569 first-year medical students are underrepresented minorities (African-American, Mexican-American, Puerto Rican, Native American). At the UCSF School of Medicine, enrollment of first-year underrepresented students dropped for the fourth consecutive year. This fall’s entering class includes only 19 students from underrepresented groups -- 13.5 percent of the 141 new medical students. UCSF admitted 50 underrepresented minorities, but only the 19 decided to start their medical careers here. In 1995, 42 students – nearly 30 percent of the entering medical school class – were from those minority groups considered underrepresented. The numbers have dropped from 29 in 1996 to 26 in 1997 and 24 last year. UC President Richard C. Atkinson yesterday directed the new task force to: 1) examine the reasons for this decline, given that the number of admission offers to underrepresented students increased nearly 30 percent this year; 2) assess longer-term trends in underrepresented minority enrollment in the University's medical schools and their implications for both education and access to health care; and 3) recommend steps that UC can take to encourage more underrepresented students to choose health sciences careers, prepare them for admission and recruit them to UC. Atkinson will ask the task force to complete its work by next spring. "We know that many factors, from the availability of scholarships to geographical location, influence students' choices about medical school," said Atkinson. "But a significant number of underrepresented students accepted at UC this year chose to go elsewhere, and understanding why could make a difference to our outreach efforts." A total of 196 admissions offers were made to underrepresented minority students at UC’s five medical schools (Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco). Some students likely received offers from more than one UC medical school. Last year, 151 admission offers were made. Despite the 30 percent increase in the number of admissions offers this fall, acceptances from underrepresented students dropped to 63 from the previous year's 72, a decline of 12.5 percent. This year's figures continue a downward trend that began in 1993. Data prepared by the American Association of Medical Colleges shows that as recently as the early 1990s, four of UC's five medical schools ranked within the top eight medical schools nationally in the percentage of their graduates who were underrepresented students. UC Vice President for Health Affairs Cornelius L. Hopper will chair the task force, which will look at both short- and long-term trends in the admission and enrollment of underrepresented minorities. He will retire as vice president for health affairs in January 2000, but at Atkinson's request he has agreed to serve as chair of the task force until it has completed its work "The continuing decline in enrollment of underrepresented students is particularly disturbing in view of the increasing diversity of the state and the University's prior record in this area," said Hopper. "We believe that expanding the number of underrepresented students trained by UC medical schools is one vital dimension of our efforts to improve access to care for medically underserved groups and communities in California." A report by UCSF researchers last spring suggested that California has become a less hospitable environment for underrepresented minorities seeking entrance to medical school. The report cited the UC Regents’ decision in 1995 to abolish affirmative action programs and the passage in California of Proposition 209. Links: UC data on fall 1999 medical school enrollments California Medical Schools Becoming Less Hospitable to Underrepresented Minorities More Women but Fewer Underrepresented Minorities Enroll in Medical School Statistics (1998) Released on Underrepresented Minority Enrollment at UC Medical Schools UC Reports Decline in Underrepresented Minority Medical School Applications, Enrollments |
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