Policies for expanding access to higher education and changing the profile of medical graduates in Brazil: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

This study assesses the effectiveness of policies to expand access to higher education in reducing inequities in the profile of graduates from medical courses in Brazil. This work consists of a cross-sectional study using data from the 2018 Higher Education Census. Analyses were carried out to identify the association between being a beneficiary of the Quota Law, the University for All Program, or the Student Financing Fund and three markers: born in a small-sized municipality, being non-white, or having attended high school in a public school. Analyses were performed using Pearson’s chi-square test, and multivariate analysis was conducted using Poisson regression. A sig-nificant association was found between being a beneficiary of these policies and being a non-white graduate, who was born in a small town and who had studied in a public high school. All policies presented adjusted Prevalence Ratio (PR), which demonstrated an association with statistical sig-nificance. The Quota Law was the most effective policy, with RP=1.92 for non-white graduates, RP=6.66 for having studied in a public high scho-ol, and RP=1.08 for being born in a small town. Despite these results, these groups remain underre-presented in medical courses and in the workforce.