Did you hear how all doctors hate Obamacare and how they are all going to quit and that no one will want to be a doctor anymore cause it’s gonna suck and they won’t make any money and that even though being a physician is the most common profession in the top 1% of earners in America that we’re gonna see the supply dry up and the competition won’t be as fierce and no one who is smart will want to be a doctor and it’s all gonna suck?!?!?!?!
A record number of students applied to and enrolled in the nation’s medical schools in 2013, according to data released today by the AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges).
The total number of applicants to medical school grew by 6.1 percent to 48,014, surpassing the previous record set in 1996 by 1,049 students. First-time applicants, another important indicator of interest in medicine, increased by 5.8 percent to 35,727. The number of students enrolled in their first year of medical school exceeded 20,000 for the first time (20,055), a 2.8 percent increase over 2012.
“At a time when the nation faces a shortage of more than 90,000 doctors by the end of the decade and millions are gaining access to health insurance, we are very glad that more students than ever want to become physicians. However, unless Congress lifts the 16-year-old cap on federal support for residency training, we will still face a shortfall of physicians across dozens of specialties,” said AAMC President and CEO Darrell G. Kirch, M.D. “Students are doing their part by applying to medical school in record numbers. Medical schools are doing their part by expanding enrollment. Now Congress needs to do its part and act without delay to expand residency training to ensure that everyone who needs a doctor has access to one.”
Oh, and by the way, three quarters of applicants had research experience. They had an average GPA of 3.54 and a median MCAT score of 29. Since lots of these applicants won’t get in, the stats for those accepted will almost certainly be better.
