Grey’s Anatomy: Gender Differences in Specialty Choice for Medical Students in China

Abstract

Gender differences in sub-major choices within the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields have scarcely been discussed. This study uses administrative records from a top medical school in China to examine gender differences in medical students’ specialty choices. Results showed that, although the gender gap in choosing a clinical track shrinks over time, female students in the clinical track are far less likely to choose highly paid surgical specialties, and this gap persists over time. However, female students outperformed male students in all of the courses. Thus, academic performance cannot explain the underrepresentation of female students in surgery. We further collected questions such as “Why don’t female students choose surgical specialties” and answers to them in “Chinese Quora”, Zhihu.com. A preliminary text analysis showed that ultra-physical load, discrimination in recruitment, women-unfriendly work climates, and difficulties in taking care of family are barriers that prevent women from choosing surgery.

An Analysis of Factors Influencing Chinese University Students’ Major Choice from the Perspective of Gender Differences

“…Findings indicate significant gender differences in undergraduate students' major choices. This result aligns with the findings of Shao et al (2022) [23], who used administrative records from a prestigious medical school in China to investigate gender disparities in medical students' specialty choices. Existing research suggests that the disparities in innate capabilities between males and females, arising from biological and genetic factors, such as females being disadvantaged in abstract thinking and scientific cognition, manifest in the selection of disciplines and majors as students enter higher education.…”

“…From the perspective of maintaining social gender segregation, both males and females, influenced by external factors and driven by internalized different values and potential social discrimination, make distinct decisions in education and major choices, tending towards the professions society expects of them [49]. In the current study, as the majors in finance and economics universities mainly comprise non-STEM disciplines such as accounting and finance, these majors are often considered more suitable for female students by society [23]. Therefore, in our research, female students tend to choose popular applied majors.…”

“…Scholars argue that societal expectations of different roles and expectations for males and females in specific industries may influence the major choices of male and female students [23]. Engineering, computer science, and other STEM fields are considered more suitable for males, while fields such as education, sociology, and economics are considered more suitable for females.…”

“…Engineering, computer science, and other STEM fields are considered more suitable for males, while fields such as education, sociology, and economics are considered more suitable for females. These notions to some extent influence students' level of interest and willingness to pursue certain majors [23]. Additionally, educational background and family environment can also have an impact on the major choices of male and female students [24].…”

COVID-19 and Access to Medical Professional Careers: Does Gender Matter?

“…However, the greater presence of women in the medical profession has not been reflected in a uniform distribution in professional practice according to the different medical [7] and surgical specialties [10][11][12]. Some studies suggest that this inequality is due to the different motivations, aspirations and/or preferences of men and women when choosing a career [7,[13][14][15][16].…”