UK medical schools fail to recruit poor students: BMA report

In what might be termed as an eye opening report, the British Medical Association has given out figures threatening to open a much curbed debate. With figures indicating hardly any improvement in the number of recruitments from low income groups over the past five years, British medical schools are found threateningly balanced on the thin line demarcating discrimination from stark reality.

Despite the many efforts from the government, there has been just a minuscule 1.7 percent rise in the number of recruitments of students coming from low income groups, in the medical schools in UK.

After having pumped over £400 million into higher education and encouraging students from all strata to pursue higher studies, the numbers sure seem discouraging to the government.

While many may suspect discriminating policies and frameworks which prevent students from poorer families to obtain admissions in professional courses; there are various factors which might actually lead to the numbers of today. One of the major reasons is the inaffordability of higher education in the country despite various programmes and fundings made available by the government to students from low income groups.

As of now, each student graduating out of a higher education institute after five years is expected to have a debt of approximately £37,000. Even with partial scholarships and sponsorships the figures are enormous and clearly discouraging for students from poor families. The situation has further been worsening with recession.

Also, it was seen by the recruiting faculty and the BMA report as well, that many students from poorer families lacked the levels of academic performance and aspirations as well as the confidence required in students seeking to be medical professional.

Schools too have been found lacking in fulfilling their responsibility of encouraging students to pursue professional degrees and courses.

As per the report of the British Medical Association, which surveyed 40,000 medical students in 2008, the ratio of students from low income groups making it to medical colleges as compared to their richer counterparts was an alarming 1:7. While almost 55 percent of medical students were females, most of them were clustered in speciality care services as opposed to very few women interested to become consultant general surgeons or medical school professors.

The government is now looking into the ways and means to increase the support to students from weaker sections of the society. Proposals to widen the eligibility for funding for medical and dental students are underway.

It remains to be seen how and in what way the improvements will actually shape out. But the urgency for action surely is there, lest the government may soon be blamed with discrimination.