International Students in the American Healthcare Industry

When you type “international students american medical school” into Google, the first result directs you to a page on the Association of American Medical Colleges’ (AAMC) website. The first question on the page is “Do U.S. medical schools ever accept international students?” The answer is “The short answer is yes, but it’s not common.”

Even from this short search session, it is obvious that international students struggle to enter the American medical industry. Let’s talk in numbers. According to the AAMC, the total number of medical school applicants was 62,443 in 2021-2022. Of these, the number of non-US citizen and non-permanent resident medical school applicants was 2,309, and the number of matriculants was 328. That’s a 14% acceptance rate amongst international students, and a 0.5% acceptance rate for international students overall.

Why is it that international students struggle to study medicine in the US? To begin with, the number of medical schools that accept international students is limited — 48 out of 170 as of 2019 — implying that the medical school application process can be even more competitive for international students than for domestic students. Next, many students may struggle to overcome financial issues. While US citizens and residents can be eligible for federal student loans, international students cannot. This means that being financially capable of paying medical school tuition can be more difficult for international students. In fact, many medical schools require such students to prove their ability to cover their expenses even before matriculating. Foreign students also face various social challenges that result from adjusting to a new environment. This is surely not an exhaustive list of the challenges international medical school applicants face, as circumstances will differ by individual. However, these are the most common difficulties.

Considering that international students face many challenges studying medicine, there must be a reason for their pursuit of a career in medicine in the United States instead of their home country. One likely reason is that the working conditions for medical students and practitioners are better in the US. For example, in the United States, the average starting salary of a doctor (post-residency) is $208,632, and the overall average is $224,190, compared to $59,292 and $87,323, respectively, in South Korea. Doctors in the United States earn a higher salary than in South Korea despite having similar working hours with an average of 51.4 hours per week in the United States and 48.1 hours in South Korea. Moreover, students studying in the US can also enjoy a high-quality education and international clinical experience while being in a diverse community of students.

While it may be discouraging to learn about the challenges that international students face, it is certainly possible to pursue a medical career in the US. The willingness to persevere through this process already makes international students stand out as an individual with the potential to become a committed healthcare professional.

Sources:

https://www.inspiraadvantage.com/blog/how-to-get-into-u-s-medical-schools-as-an-international-student

https://www.missouristate.edu/BMS/Undergraduate/Obstacles.htm

https://medicalschoolhq.net/adg-6-why-is-it-hard-to-get-into-med-school-as-an-international-applicant/

https://students-residents.aamc.org/applying-medical-school/applying-medical-school-international-applicant

https://www.aamc.org/news-insights/non-us-citizen-i-faced-hurdles-applying-us-medical-schools-now-i-ve-made-it-i-want-help-others-me

https://policyadvice.net/insurance/insights/average-doctor-salary/

https://www.salaryexpert.com/salary/job/doctor/south-korea

https://www.staffcare.com/locum-tenens-blog/news/physicians-average-hours-worked-per-week/