Aims: To develop and administer the first nationwide survey of all medical students in New Zealand. This paper reports the demographic characteristics of medical students and compares them with the general population.
Methods: A questionnaire was developed, with questions modelled on the New Zealand Census, and administered to all New Zealand medical students. Data were then compared with the New Zealand Census.
Results: The response rate was 83%. Female students made up 55.9% of the class. The ethnic composition of the class, Maori (6.8%), Pacific Islander (4.3%), NZ European (50.9%), Asian (31.4%), differed significantly from the general New Zealand population. Maori and Pacific Island students, and students from a rural background were significantly under-represented. Permanent residents represented 11.1% of the student population. Three quarters of medical students reported that at least one of their parents had a tertiary qualification.
Conclusions: Medical students are more likely to be socioeconomically advantaged and from an urban community, and less likely to be of Maori or Pacific Island descent, than the general population. In the context of a shortage of practitioners in rural, lower socioeconomic and Maori or Pacific Island areas, these differences are worrying. The number of permanent residents and female students may have implications for the New Zealand medical workforce.