ArticleBMJ open2025
Socioeconomic and demographic predictors of extracurricular achievements among UK medical students (FAST study).
Article in BMJ open, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Article
- Neurosurgery aspirants in UK medical schools: a national cross-sectional analysis of demographics, motivations, and confidence (FAST study).BMC medical education · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo investigate the relationship between demographic characteristics and extracurricular achievements among UK medical students.
designNational, cross-sectional survey.
settingAll 44 UK medical schools recognised by the General Medical Council.
participants8,395 medical students. OUTCOMES: Binary indicators of extracurricular engagement, including PubMed-indexed authorship, academic presentations, quality improvement projects, leadership roles and academic prizes. Logistic regression models were used to explore associations with demographic and extracurricular achievement predictors.
resultsLogistic regression analysis showed that students from private schools (OR 1.35, CI 1.20 to 1.53, p<0.0001) and those with a parent or sibling in medicine (OR 1.38, CI 1.12 to 1.69, p=0.002) had notably higher odds of participation in research. Ethnic disparities in raw extracurricular attainment were evident, but largely disappeared when adjusting for other predictors. Males were more likely to hold leadership roles and deliver oral presentations, but no gender differences were seen in publication rates.
conclusionsSignificant disparities in extracurricular achievement exist among UK medical students, principally associated with gender, private schooling and familial links to medicine. Apparent ethnic differences were largely attenuated after adjustment for other variables, indicating socioeconomic factors as stronger predictors of engagement. Given the role of these achievements in postgraduate selection, targeted interventions by medical schools and professional bodies to widen access to funding, mentorship and structured guidance for
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