According to admissions officials, the fifth straight annual decline in applications to U.S. medical schools may be due to the fact that many students interested in medical school this year didn’t want to bother with the toil of filling out an application.
For Brian Rapp, a senior majoring in biomedical engineering, getting through the first stage of applying to medical school was a daunting task. Because of malfunctions with the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS), a centralized application processing service for participating
medical schools, Rapp had to wait over a month to fill out his applications.
“I was too busy to stay up until four in the morning each night to log on to their website and fill out the applications,” said Rapp. “And so I had to wait until the middle of July to complete the primary applications.”
This year, AMCAS created a new electronic application, requiring students to complete the primary application online. But the system suffered from many technical problems.
Despite the obstacles Rapp faced during the application process, foregoing medical school and choosing another
profession never crossed his mind. Yet some said that the application failures may have been the deciding factor for some prospective students.
According to Associate Vice Chancellor Edwin Dodson, associate dean of admissions and
continuing medical information at the Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM), the administration does not yet know the extent to which AMCAS
malfunctions will affect the number WUSM applications this year for next fall’s incoming class. He said that failures in the system possibly caused those who were unsure whether they would go on to medical school to drop out of the application process.
“I think this group of people is most likely to drop out after they dealt with AMCAS,” said Dodson. “Unfortunately, many of those applicants are of high quality.”
The drop in applications because of AMCAS-related
problems lowers the already declining numbers of medical school applicants. According to
figures released by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), applications to medical schools nationwide declined for the fifth consecutive year. The nation’s 125 accredited medical schools received 34,859 applications for the 2001-02 academic year, six percent lower than
previous year and 25.8 percent lower than in 1996.
Following the trend, applications to WUSM also decreased for a fifth year. WUSM received 4,010 applications for the 2001-02
academic year, eight percent lower than last year and 38 percent lower than 1996.
WUSM has not made any
initiatives to increase the applicant pool, and its criteria for admitting applicants remain unaltered.
According to Dodson, while the decline has not affected the quality of the applicant pool at WUSM, there are reasons to be concerned about the national trend.
“Medicine as a profession has enjoyed a steady supply of bright students,” he said. “If we don’t
continue to draw this talent, the profession will suffer.”
Dodson said that one of the most important factors influencing the number of applicants has been the economy. The business cycle may affect the number of applications because in more prosperous times students often choose professions in areas such as business.
“People are frequently
influenced by money. Internet start-ups, for example, opened opportunities to earn money more easily, and some people who would otherwise consider medical schools went to work in businesses,” he said.
But according to Rapp, many students who are attracted to
medicine because of their fascination with the profession are not able to afford medical schools. Rapp, who has applied to 13 schools, said the application process has cost him over $1,000 so far, including traveling to seven schools for interviews.
“I think a lot of students ask themselves this question: ‘Should I be indebted in the future to do something I love or should I choose another job and live without worrying about paying off debts?’” Rapp said.
According to Dodson, another factor deterring potential
applicants is managed care. Some students feel that HMOs, organizations that contract with medical facilities, physicians and employers to provide medical care, limit the range of options a physician has in treating patients and increase the amount of paper work physicians do.
Rapp said, “I don’t think many students who consider becoming physicians would like to spend their time doing clerical work. That defeats the purpose of going to medical school because they would rather spend their time helping patients.”
Tania Lee, a pre-med sophomore majoring in business, doubts managed care has an effect on those who are determined to become doctors.
“I think these people are willing to put up with just about anything to become physicians,” said Lee.

Contact Marcin at
[email protected]

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