Current premed college students are particularly interested in the employment outlook for physicians. With the recent Supreme Court decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act in addition to the challenges of providing care for an aging population, there will continue to be increased demand for physicians and other health professional in the US. In fact, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) predicts a shortage of between 45,000 and 90,000 physicians over the next decade. There will be shortages in both primary and specialty care.

 

There seems to be a greater need for primary care doctors than for specialists. To encourage more students to pursue a career in primary care, the government is exploring ways to more fairly value primary care efforts. In dealing with the projected shortage of healthcare providers, tomorrow’s physicians can expect to provide care under a collaborative model that involves a more diverse team of healthcare providers leaning on technology to create a more efficient system, with increased patient satisfaction and improved health outcomes.

 

During the 1990’s workforce studies found that the country was going to begin experiencing a shortage of physicians over the upcoming decades. In 2000, the State of Florida established a new medical school at Florida State University. This was the first new medical school established during the previous two decades. In 2006, the Association of American Medical Colleges issued a policy that called for a 30% increase in medical school enrollment. This goal would require existing medical schools to increase enrollment and the creation of new medical schools. Since the AAMC policy was first issued, approximately fifteen new medical schools were established in the US bringing the total to 141 medical schools. In addition there have been approximately 11 new osteopathic schools established since 2002.

During the 2013-14 year, 49,480 students applied to medical schools while 21,355 applicants had been offered an acceptance to at least one medical school which translates to a 43% acceptance rate to medical schools. With such a low acceptance rate, it appears that more students are applying for positions than there are spots available.