1. Women Medical Students’ and Residents’ Interest in
Academic Medicine Careers
Ellington K1, Sanchez NF 2, Sanchez JP 3
1. St. George’s University, St. George’s, Grenada West Indies 2. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 3. Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
Introduction Methods Discussion
In the last four decades women students have achieved near parity within Analysis of quantitative and qualitative results yielded four distinctive
The Building the Next Generation of Academic Physicians (BNGAP) initiative
medical schools across the United States.1 The increasing numbers of findings:
consists of a group of academic medicine faculty, residents and gstudents
women medical students is the result of advocacy, policies, climate change whose purpose is to increase diversity in the academic medicine workforce. 1. Gender discrimination: Women medical students and residents
and leadership within medical institutions, professional associations and disproportionately reported that it is more difficult for women to succeed
societies including the Association of American Medical Colleges(AAMC). • We enrolled students and residents through a systematic strategic
in academia when compared with men’s attitudes.
The striking increases in the number of women medical students moving convenience sampling of attendees at five national medical conferences.
through residency training and preparing for careers in medicine is hard- 2. Research and Academia: Women reported less success than men in
• A survey was administered to collect data describing respondents’
won diversity progress. However, women today remain markedly publishing scientific papers and abstracts. In addition, men in focus
influences motivating or dissuading them from pursuing a career in academic
underrepresented in senior academic and leadership positions in medical groups were more likely than women to emphasize research as the
medicine
schools and teaching hospitals.2 Understanding future physicians’ interest primary activity of academic faculty.
in and preparation for a career in academia may shed light on current and • Survey participants were invited to participate in a series of 11 focus
3. Mentorship: Women survey participants reported mentors as significant
future gender disparities in academic success. This study examines groups to discus a range of topics, including participants’ definitions of
positive influences on their interest in an academic career. The focus
women’s perspectives on and preparedness for academic medical careers academic medicine, early experiences that influenced interest in academic
group participants often cited women mentors as impactful role models.
at the earliest stages of medical training—during medical school and medicine, career and life plans over the next 10 years, challenges
residency. anticipated in academic medical careers, and experiences that have helped 4. Career Knowledge: The paucity of resources and information on
the trainees prepare for academic careers. academic careers in medical education further compounds the challenges
women face in career development.
AAMC Faculty Roster, 2010
Distribution of Faculty by Gender, Rank, Race/Hispanic Origin
Results Conclusions
• 594 medical students (58.6% women) and 178 residents (53.4% BNGAP is optimistic about the promise of aspiring women medical
women) participated in this research. students and residents to achieve success in academic medicine with the
• 62.4% of women medical students and 84.2% of women residents following recommendations:
reported an interest in pursuing academic medicine careers.
• Women reported the following items as the most positive influences on • Develop resources and tools for career guidance and professional
development.
their interest in academic careers: mentorship received, teaching
responsibilities, and facilitating the success of others. • Increasing opportunities along the pathway for mentoring and
• Women reported less confidence and less success in the ability to research scholarship
complete research than their male counterparts. For example, for the
statement “I do not have sufficient guidance to develop a publishable • On-going robust research and evaluation with particular attention to
research project,” 31.6% of women residents and 12.0% of male women to examine diversity and inclusion at academic medical
residents agreed with that statement (p<0.01). Women students were centers.
Objectives also significantly less likely than male students to agree that “I am
confident in my ability to secure grant funding for a project” (20.1% vs. Literature Cited
30.1%, p < 0.01).
To consider women students’ and residents’ perspectives on academic • Women residents were less likely than male residents to co-author a 1.Roskovensky LB, Grbic D, Matthew D. The Changing Gender
medicine and their decisions to pursue careers in academic medicine scientific abstract (43.2% vs 65.1%, p<0.01). Women residents were Composition of U.S. medical School Applicants and Matriculants. AAMC
also less likely than male residents to co-author a published paper, Analysis in Brief 2012;12(1)
• explore positive and negative influences on pursuing a career in (41.1% vs 54.2%, p=0.08).
academia • Women students were less likely than male students to co-author on a 2. Magrane D, Lang J. An Overview of Women in U.S. Academic
• examine women students’ and residents’ current preparedness for a manuscript (29.6% vs 36.2%, p=0.09) or abstract (35.3% vs 43.1%, Medicine, 2005-06. AAMC Analysis in Brief 2006;6(7)
career in academia p=0.05).
• develop recommendations to inform practices and policies to • In focus groups, women disproportionately cited teaching as the sentinel
support existing and new strategies for improving women’s activity of academic medical faculty, while men’s comments reflected a
preparation for careers in academia. greater emphasis on research.