Sir, – While academic achievements are obviously an important component of the process of entry into medical school, assessment of candidate’s qualities “outside the classroom” is also an important aspect of the selection process in other countries. The disadvantage is that the process demands time, energy and logistic support.
Acknowledging that medical education in the US is largely graduate-based rather than straight from the secondary level, some comparisons may be worthwhile. At the University of North Carolina Medical School, a significant emphasis is placed not just on academic achievements (MCat results, undergraduate grades), but also on other parameters, and performance at interview.
Faculty members donate time to assess applications, to narrow down the “short list”, and then spend time interviewing, discussing and finalising the class line up – as a committee, with a dean of admissions at the helm. Qualities such as communication skills, life experiences, an ability to learn independently for life, as well as an ability to work on teams, evidence of service, and experience in health care are taken into account.
Finally, emphasis is placed on diversity, such that the class is composed of a range of students, including not just academic “stars”, but also mature students, those from different ethnicities, those from disadvantaged backgrounds, and those likely to return to practice in rural and deprived areas.
The school of medicine regularly examines outcomes, to ensure that its efforts are consistent with its goals, that is, to produce doctors who are educated, compassionate, effective communicators, who will hopefully go on to serve the people of the state, which of course has invested significantly in the process. Such a system may not be exactly appropriate for Irish medical school entry just yet, but some shift in a more holistic direction, away from the “perfect Leaving Certificate”/ HPat might be worth considering. – Yours, etc,