Locals make up 70% of medical intake

Medicine

The number of South Australian students accepted into medicine at the University of Adelaide has more than doubled in the past five years, despite stiff competition from interstate applicants.

Contrary to reports that local school leavers are being overlooked in the selection process, the University has enrolled 94 new South Australian students in first-year medicine this year, compared to just 41 in 2003.

The Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Professor Justin Beilby, said the increase reflects a commitment by the State Government and the University of Adelaide to answer South Australia's medical needs.

"Many people are under the misapprehension that interstate applicants are taking the majority of medical school places at the University of Adelaide, and that is simply not the case. The figures show this quite clearly," Professor Beilby said.

In 2008, South Australians make up 70% of the domestic first-year medical students, despite the fact that locals applying for medicine accounted for just 31% of the total pool of applicants.

"Entry into medicine at the University of Adelaide is highly competitive, with 2071 applications received this year from all over Australia," Professor Beilby said. "Unfortunately, due to overwhelming demand, more than 93% of applicants do not get offered a place, regardless of how well they score - and the average TER for successful applicants is over 99.

"The TER is not the sole criteria for selection, however. An interview and medical admissions test help us to identify desirable traits, apart from academic ability, for people wanting to work in the medical profession."

Professor Beilby said the increase in local representation among medical students would help to meet the State's health needs in the next two decades.

"Thanks to the additional 40 medical places allocated to the University in 2007 by the Federal Government, as well as the extra rural bonded places funded by the State Government and the places offered through our tertiary transfer scheme, we are going a long way towards providing for our future medical workforce needs."

Story by Candy Gibson