SynthesisBMJ open2019
Factors influencing subspecialty choice among medical students: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMJ open, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 114 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
114 citing papers in PubMed.
- A big problem for little people: the impact of proposed Medicaid reimbursement cuts and the fragility of pediatric rheumatology care.Pediatric rheumatology online journal · 2026Article
- Intensive care subspecialty in turkey: what do emergency medicine physicians think?Clinics (Sao Paulo, Brazil) · 2026Article
- YouTube Videos as a Tool to Educate Medical Students About Careers in Radiation Oncology.Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education · 2026Article
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- Article
- Guiding subspecialty choice in pediatric radiology through independent longitudinal mentorship and career modeling.Pediatric radiology · 2026Article
- Influencing surgical career choice among final-year medical students: a multi-center cross-sectional study in Türkiye.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Breaking stereotypes or making compromises? gender, income, and the unequal landscape of medical specialty choice.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Education Research: Choosing Wisely: A Mixed-Methods Study of Career Choices of Students Completing Advanced Neurology Electives.Neurology. Education · 2026Article
- (How) does majoring in the social sciences and humanities relate to specialty choice?: a cross-sectional study.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Duke Cancer Care Experience: a longitudinal, multidisciplinary oncology curriculum for medical students.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Profiles and motivations of residents transitioning to or from emergency medicine: a nationwide survey in France.International journal of emergency medicine · 2026Article
- Career choice and interdisciplinary education in forensic pathology: a cross-sectional study.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Not just a calling: the psychological logic of medical specialty preferences among second-year medical students in Poland.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Future doctors, future scholars: factors influencing China-educated international medical students' career intentions in primary care and academic medicine.Human resources for health · 2026Article
- Motives Influencing Arab Students' Preference for Cardiology: A Cross-sectional Multicenter Study.Annals of African medicine · 2026Article
- Global trends influencing orthopedic surgeons' midshaft clavicle fracture management: a Bullet Health Analysis.Journal of trauma and injury · 2026Article
- Specialty preferences and influencing factors among undergraduate medical students in Ain Shams University.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Article
- Understanding Factors Motivating Trainees to Pursue a Career in Radiology: An Interview Study.Cureus · 2026Article
54 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo characterise the contributing factors that affect medical students' subspecialty choice and to estimate the extent of influence of individual factors on the students' decision-making process.
designSystematic review and meta-analysis.
methodsA systematic search of the Cochrane Library, ERIC, Web of Science, CNKI and PubMed databases was conducted for studies published between January 1977 and June 2018. Information concerning study characteristics, influential factors and the extent of their influence (EOI) was extracted independently by two trained investigators. EOI is the percentage level that describes how much each of the factors influenced students' choice of subspecialty. The recruited medical students include students in medical school, internship, residency training and fellowship, who are about to or have just made a specialty choice. The estimates were pooled using a random-effects meta-analysis model due to the between-study heterogeneity.
resultsData were extracted from 75 studies (882 209 individuals). Overall, the factors influencing medical students' choice of subspecialty training mainly included academic interests (75.29%), competencies (55.15%), controllable lifestyles or flexible work schedules (53.00%), patient service orientation (50.04%), medical teachers or mentors (46.93%), career opportunities (44.00%), workload or working hours (37.99%), income (34.70%), length of training (32.30%), prestige (31.17%), advice from others (28.24%) and student debt (15.33%), with significant between-study heterogeneity (p<0.0001). Subgroup analyses revealed that the EOI of academic interests was higher in developed countries than that in developing countries (79.66% [95% CI 70.73% to 86.39%] vs 60.41% [95% CI 43.44% to 75.19%]; Q=3.51, p
conclusionsThis systematic review and meta-analysis provided a quantitative evaluation of the top 12 influencing factors associated with medical students' choice of subspecialty. Our findings provide the basis for the development of specific, effective strategies to optimise the distribution of physicians among different departments by modifying these influencing factors.
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