A look at a deviant group of medical school applicants

A total of 246 physicians who either had graduated from or had matriculated without graduating from dental school prior to entering a medical school were identified, and a combination multiple-choice, open-ended questionnaire was mailed to the group. Completed questionnaires were recived from 194 subjects for a 79 percent response rate. The questionnaire was designed to elicit information about the decision to study dentistry and the subsequent decision to study medicine. The authors were also interested in the process of admission to medical school, in academic performance in both schools, in choice of medical specialty, and in attitudes toward dentistry and medicine.