Increasing diversity among the American College of Epidemiology membership

Our objective is to describe the American College of Epidemiology (College) membership, including recent trends in member demographic profile and professional characteristics.

College members were divided into two groups: i) year 2000 member (i.e., member as of December 31, 2000), and ii) new member admitted into the College between January 1, 2001, and January 1, 2005. The two groups were compared by using descriptive statistics. Proportions are reported with 95% confidence intervals.

As of December 31, 2000, there were 859 active members. During the next 48 months, an additional 300 members joined the College. Compared with members on December 31, 2000, new members were younger (57 versus 43 years; p < 0.001). New members also were less likely to be men (66% versus 53%; p = 0.002) and white (87% versus 69%; p < 0.001). The full race/ethnicity breakdown for year 2000 was 87% white, 4% black, 2% Hispanic, and 7% other, whereas that of new members was 69% white, 11% black, 2% Hispanic, and 18% other.

In recent years, the College has become more diverse in terms of sex and race/ethnicity. Continued improvements in membership diversity across these and other domains bode well for the College as it strives to maintain a vital membership base representing all aspects of epidemiology.