title: Reasons for choosing the profession and profile of newly qualified physicians in Brazil.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the socio-demographic profile, path to medical school admission and factors affecting the choice of becoming a physician in Brazil.
  
  
  METHODS
  Application of a structured questionnaire to 4,601 participants among the 16,323 physicians who graduated between 2014 and 2015 that subsequently registered with one of the 27 Regional Boards of Medicine (CRMs).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The average age of participants is 27 years, 77.2% are white, 57% come from families with a monthly income greater than ten times the minimum wage, 65% have fathers who have completed higher education, 79.1% attended a private high school, and 63.5% selected the "will to make a difference in people's lives or do good" as their main reason for choosing medicine, with some differences between the sexes and matriculation at a public or private medical school.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The recent politics for educational diversity and the opening of additional medical schools has not yet had an impact on the socio-demographic profile of graduates, who are mainly white, wealthy individuals.
authors.affiliation: PhD in Sciences, Professor of the Department of Preventative Medicine, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo (FMUSP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mário César
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Scheffer
authors.affiliation: PhD in Public Health, Researcher of the Department of Preventative Medicine, FMUSP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Aline Gil Alves
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Guilloux
authors.affiliation: PhD in Public Health, MD and Professor at Instituto de Medicina Social, Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mario Roberto Dal
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Poz
authors.affiliation: PhD in Preventative Medicine, MD and Professor of the Department of Preventative Medicine, FMUSP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lilia Blima
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Schraiber
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001938:Brazil; D002321:Career Choice; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012577:Schools, Medical; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult