Medicine approaches gender parity; falls short of racial and ethnic diversity
Facts at your fingertips
By Emily Margosian, assistant editor, July 1, 2021
Every three years, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) releases a statistical report in combination with data from the American Medical Association (AMA) on diversity in medical education and the physician workforce in the United States. According to the most recent report, diversity among medical school applicants, matriculants, and graduates has continued to grow. However, gains in diversity were not shared by all groups.
AAMC data also indicated that medical school faculty continues to be predominantly white (63.9%) and male (58.6%), particularly so at the professor and associate professor ranks, and there remains persistent underrepresentation of racial and ethnic minority groups and women in medical school faculty positions. Like faculty demographics, most active physicians are white (56.2%) and male (64.1%). However, according to AAMC data, among the youngest cohort of active physicians (34 years of age and younger), women outnumbered men in most racial and ethnic groups.
See the graphic below for an expanded breakdown of the current race and gender demographic trends in undergraduate medical education and the physician workforce. Click on the image to magnify.
