Report Reveals Racial Disparities in Medical School Admissions
A new report released on Thursday suggests that some medical schools are implementing positive action policies that result in a higher recognition of black students compared to their white and Asian counterparts.
The findings indicate that these schools are more inclined to admit black students with lower Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) scores. Specifically, data from the “Do No Harm” organization reveals that the average MCAT score for recognized black students in 2024 was 508.3, whereas the averages for white and Asian students were 512.1 and 514.0, respectively.
To give some context, the average MCAT score is around 506. For highly selective medical schools, achieving at least a score of 510 is generally considered competitive.
When looking at less competitive score ranges, black applicants scoring between 506 and 511 had an acceptance rate of 11.3%, while just 5.6% of white students and 3.6% of Asian students in that score range were admitted. In the higher score range of 512 to 517, 17% of black applicants were accepted compared to 7.9% of white applicants and 6.9% of Asian applicants.
Interestingly, some schools displayed more noticeable disparities. For instance, at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, black applicants with similar MCAT scores and GPAs were nearly ten times more likely to be recognized than white or Asian applicants. Similarly, Eastern Virginia Medical School also showed an elevenfold increase in recognition for black students compared to their peers.
The University of Wisconsin and Eastern Virginia School of Medicine did not respond to requests for comments regarding these findings.
This report by “Do No Harm” analyzed data from 23 of the 93 public allopathic medical schools across the United States. Notably, many schools did not respond to inquiries about their admissions practices.
With few exceptions, recognized white and Asian students consistently had higher MCAT scores than the accepted black students in the responding schools. In fact, at 13 of these schools, the average MCAT scores for accepted black students were lower than those of rejected white and Asian candidates.
Despite a Supreme Court ruling deeming race-based enrollment policies illegal and discriminatory, some institutions appear to continue implementing questionable admissions strategies. Reports suggest that those attempting to adhere to these policies have seen an increase in their Asian student demographics.
The U.S. Department of Education reiterated in February that racial discrimination in admissions is illegal and has launched investigations into numerous schools following concerns raised by this report.
