Report on the visit to the examination held at Philadelphia, PA., by the National Board of Medical Examiners, May 19th-26th, 1920 / by Sir Humphry Rolleston and H.J. Waring.

  • Rolleston, Humphry Davy, Sir, 1862-1944.
Date:
[1920]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Report on the visit to the examination held at Philadelphia, PA., by the National Board of Medical Examiners, May 19th-26th, 1920 / by Sir Humphry Rolleston and H.J. Waring. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    University of California. North-Western University of Chicago. University of Yermont. University of Illinois. Loyola University, Chicago. College of Physicians and Surgeons, Los Angeles. Columbia University, College of Physicians and Surgeons, N.Y. Detroit College of Medicine and Surgery. Other variations in the requirements demanded by “A’; Class Schools are seen in the credentials of applicants for admission to the Schools : thus the Johns Hopkins Hospital requires the B.A. degree, and Harvard either a B.A. degree or that the student shall have been within the first 1/3 of the class in the two years’ College course of the pre-medical subjects (Physics, Chemistry and Biology). Many schools require in addition evidence of knowledge of one, and some of two, foreign languages. The University of Chicago demands a physical examination, before admission both to the pre-medical or College course and to the 4-years’ Medical course : and in addition the intending student goes through a psychological examination. The average age of students graduating in Medicine from this University is 28 years. The University of Minnesota has for four years required from students wishing to enter its Medical School an honours mark (96 per cent.) in the two years of College work, a physical exami¬ nation, psychological tests for mentality based on Binet’s tests, and an examination on general information : last year there were 150 applicants, of whom 80 were accepted. 'Women students are admitted to nearly all the Schools that were visited : at Cornell they form 15 per cent, and at Pennsylvania University six per cent, of the total number of Medical Students. It is admitted that all the Schools now classed as “A” are not of exactly the same standard, and that some of the Schools so classed were not in all respects up to the ideals of the selecting Committee, a 75 per cent, standard of the ideals set up being at present considered the qualification. The “ A ” class of Schools that the Commission visited always have more applicants than there is room for, and they therefore are able to select their students and maintain the standard set up. During the first year unsuitable students, sometimes to the extent of 15 per cent., are weeded out: the vacancies thus arising are filled by students from other Schools, especially those which restrict instruction to the subjects of the first two medical years. From this summary the conclusion appears to be justified that the educational demands for admission to the Medical Schools classed as “ A” are very different from those in the past, and that, as the National Board of Medical Examiners demands much the same standard, its conditions of admission to examination are in this respect on a high level.