Racial, Ethnic, and Sex Diversity Trends in Health Professions Programs From Applicants to Graduates.

Area of Science:

• Health Professions Education
• Health Workforce Diversity
• Health Equity

Background:

• A diverse health care system necessitates a diverse health professions student population.
• Underrepresented minoritized groups (URMGs) and sex representation are key metrics for evaluating diversity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze trends in student diversity within Doctor of Medicine (MD), Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO), Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS), Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD), and Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) programs.
• To compare the representation of URMGs and sex distribution against the age-adjusted US population from 2003 to 2019.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study utilizing deidentified data from 2003-2019 from major health professions associations.
• Analysis of race, ethnicity, and sex of applicants, matriculants, and degree conferrals.
• Comparison with US Census age-adjusted population data (20-34 years) using the representation quotient.

Main Results:

• Proportions of URMGs increased in DDS, DMD, PharmD, and DO programs but decreased in MD programs from 2003-2019.
• All programs demonstrated higher proportions of Asian students compared to the US Census.
• All programs had lower representation of male students and URMGs (American Indian/Alaska Native, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander) than the US Census.

Conclusions:

• While progress in racial, ethnic, and sex diversity is evident in most health professions programs, representation of URMGs remains below national benchmarks.
• Achieving a truly representative health care workforce requires the implementation of additional targeted strategies.