The Impact of UK Medical Students’ Demographics and Socioeconomic Factors on Their Self-Reported Familiarity With the Postgraduate Training Pathways and Application Process: Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: UK medical graduates can apply for specialty training after completing a 2-year internship (foundation training). Postfoundation training application requirements vary depending on specialty but fundamentally require key skills such as teaching, research, and leadership. Objective: This study investigated whether medical student demographics impact their self-reported familiarity with the Post-Foundation Training Pathways (PFTPs) and Post-Foundation Application Process (PFAP). Methods: This was a cross-sectional study using a Bristol Online Survey. We invited all UK medical students to answer a range of questions about their demographics. Students were then asked to rank their familiarity with PFTPs and PFAP on a scale of 1 to 5 (1=least familiar and 5=most familiar). The responses were collected between March 2022 and April 2022 and exported for further analysis. Statistical analysis was conducted in Stata (version 17.1; StataCorp) using chi-square tests. Results: A total of 850 students from 31 UK medical schools took part. There was a significant difference between gender and self-reported familiarity with PFTPs (P