School of Education, Faculty of Education and Arts, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia.
Med Educ. 2015 Jan;49(1):73-83. doi: 10.1111/medu.12540.
This study was designed to elucidate why students from backgrounds of lower socio-economic status (SES) and who may be first in their family (FIF) to enter university continue to be under-represented in medical schools.
Academically able high school students (n = 33) from a range of socio-economic backgrounds participated in focus groups. School careers advisors (n = 5) were interviewed. Students discussed their career and education plans and ideas about a medical career. Careers advisors discussed enablers and barriers to a medical career for their students.
Students of lower SES and of FIF status attending schools situated in poorer geographic locations had limited access to suitable work experience and, despite their participation in gifted and talented classes, were considered to be at greater risk of not achieving the high level of academic achievement required for admission to medical school.
There is utility in exploring intersecting differences and Appardurai's theory of the 'capacity to aspire' for the purpose of understanding the causes of the under-representation of disadvantaged students in medical schools. A focused materialist approach to building the aspirations of disadvantaged students, particularly those attending schools located in poorer areas, is required if effective pre-entry equity programmes are to be developed and evaluated. Alternatively, medical schools might rethink their reliance on very high academic attainment in the admission process.
本研究旨在阐明为什么来自社会经济地位较低（SES）背景的学生，以及那些可能是家庭中第一个上大学的学生（FIF），在医学院校中的代表性仍然不足。
本研究选取了来自不同社会经济背景的 33 名学业能力较强的高中生参与焦点小组讨论，同时采访了 5 名校外职业顾问。学生们讨论了他们的职业和教育计划，以及对医学职业的想法。职业顾问则讨论了学生从事医学职业的促进因素和障碍。
来自社会经济地位较低和家庭中第一代大学生的学生，就读于地理位置较差的学校，他们获得合适的工作经验的机会有限，尽管他们参加了天才班，但他们被认为更有可能无法达到进入医学院所需的高水平学术成就。
为了理解为什么社会经济地位较低的学生在医学院校中的代表性不足，探索交叉差异和 Appardurai 的“渴望能力”理论是有用的。如果要制定和评估有效的入学前公平计划，就需要采取有针对性的唯物主义方法来培养弱势学生的愿望，特别是那些就读于贫困地区学校的学生。或者，医学院校可能需要重新考虑他们在入学过程中对高学术成就的依赖。
