Move to increase minorities in medicine focuses on undergrads

The Assn. for American Medical Colleges is launching its awareness campaign at four schools.

By Myrle Croasdale, AMNews staff. Dec. 18, 2006.

More minorities are graduating with biology degrees, the most common pre-med major. But the graduates are not applying to medical school, according to the Assn. of American Medical Colleges.

To try to reverse this trend, the AAMC is rolling out a two-year marketing campaign to raise awareness among minority college students about medical careers.

With a budget of $1 million for the first year, the AAMC this fall launched a Web site (www.aspiringdocs.org) that contains resources for students considering medical school and an online forum where they can ask advice of experts. The AAMC also developed a series of ads and started campus pilot projects at the University of Arizona in Tucson and the University of Pittsburgh.

The pilot campaigns will include AAMC ads in campus newsletters and on-campus Web sites promoting AspiringDocs.org and minorities in medicine. The AAMC also will participate in campus events such as career fairs and speakers series.

The campaign aims to answer common concerns minority students have about medical school, such as how to apply, do well on the Medical College Admissions Test and pay tuition. It also seeks to inspire students with personal stories from minority doctors.