Effect of an Intensive Educational Program for Minority College Students and Recent Graduates on the Probability of Acceptance to Medical School

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Abstract
INCREASING the number and proportion of minority physicians is a long-standing goal of government and professional associations in the United States.1 Four racial/ethnic groups—blacks, Mexican Americans, mainland Puerto Ricans, and American Indians—are designated as underrepresented in medicine by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).2 Together these groups comprise 21% of the US population,3 but only 8.6% of the US physician population1 and about 13% of entering medical school classes.4 In addition to concerns about achieving equitable access to careers in medicine for minority groups, the lack of parity of minority populations in medicine raises concerns about access to medical care for underserved populations. Minority physicians are considerably more likely to serve minority and low-income communities that traditionally have poor access to care.5-7