Ethnic and gender variations in university applicants to United Kingdom medical and dental schools.
OBJECTIVE
To explore ethnic and gender variations amongst applicants to undergraduate United Kingdom medical and dental schools.


METHODS
Retrospective analyses of University and College Admissions Services (UCAS) data on all students applying to study pre-clinical medicine and dentistry, during the academic years 1994/5, 1995/6 and 1996/7. Information for each medical and dental applicant included age, gender, social class and ethnic group.


RESULTS
Of all applicants, just over half (50.2%) were male, though a greater proportion of applicants to dentistry were male (54.1%) than for medicine (49.3%) (OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.15, 1.28). Over one third (36.4%) of all students were from minority ethnic groups, a larger proportion of which were dental students (48.3%) than were medical students (33.8%) (OR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.73, 1.94). There were also marked differences between medicine and dentistry when the ethnic groups were examined separately. The largest number of applicants from minority ethnic groups came from the Indian community, and this group increased in size annually by 4.1% (P < 0.05) for medicine, and 29% (P < 0.05) for dentistry.


CONCLUSIONS
Significant inter-ethnic and gender differences are observed amongst applicants to medicine and dentistry. Dentistry appears to be relatively more attractive to minority ethnic applicants.
Bedi
R
R
WHO Collaborating Centre for Disability, Culture and Oral Health, Eastman Dental Institute, London.
Gilthorpe
M S
MS
D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001459:Bangladesh / Q000208:ethnology; D044383:Black People; D002681:China / Q000208:ethnology; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000193:education* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000208:ethnology; D008297:Male; D010154:Pakistan / Q000208:ethnology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012570:School Admission Criteria; D012737:Sex Factors; D012923:Social Class; D013335:Students, Dental / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006113:United Kingdom; D014930:Women / Q000193:education*