@PinkPrincess2014, my answers are below:
So let’s define 2 words. Attrition means people who drop out of the program completely. These are the ones who leave the program without receiving their MD degree. Some of them leave UMKC entirely and finish getting a Bachelor’s degree somewhere else. Others stay at UMKC and complete their Bachelor’s. This is usually dependent on when that person leaves or is dismissed from the program.
In the UMKC BA/MD program, extending/extension means people originally enrolled in the 6 year BA/MD program prolong it to either 7 or 8 years for a variety of reasons. I think they now call it the “Alternate Program”. Whatever, they always change the name. lol. There are people who extend initially, and later leave the program altogether and those that extend initially, who make it through and graduate with their Bachelor’s and MD degree.
I think you got your statistics here from 2007: http://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/pages/articleviewer.aspx?year=2007&issue=04000&article=00010&type=abstract
So in that article, from 1970-2005, for students who entered at Year 1 after high school, 20.6% left the program completely without receiving the MD. After the start of Year 3, only 4.8% left the program completely without receiving the MD.
I don’t think they’ve ever published statistics on the number of people who actually complete the program in 6 years. I would go by this from 2009: https://www.umkc.edu/provost/student-retention/retreat/som.ppt
Here are the reasons I think people extend in the program:
- academic trouble: getting below the required 2.8 science GPA, failing or dropping a class that is required in order to promote to the next semester (i.e. Organic → Biochem; Biochem → HSF, or somewhere in the Structure Function series) which then automatically extends you in Year 1/2
- the pace of the program can be exhausting with no large time off and it finally catches up with them
- stresses: financial burden, personal/family issues
- taking a year off to complete a year of research
As far as reasons I think people leave the program altogether:
- academic trouble: course failure, inability to keep up science GPA, not passing boards
- the pace of the program
- stresses: financial burden, personal/family issues
- people realize they’d be perfectly happy doing a career not in healthcare and realize they may have initially pursued medical school for bad reasons
- some people want to be in healthcare but not necessarily sacrifice to the point of becoming a physician and thus choose an alternative career in healthcare
I don’t know anyone who voluntarily chooses to extend unless it’s for a year of research which is usually done after Year 5. It’s almost always bc of a difficulty of some sort.
I don’t think it’s admitted out loud, but I do think there is some stigma associated with students who extend. No one in the real world cares, since most med students are traditional who do it in 8 years, but when your entire world is UMKC medical students, it’s hard to see that. It can be difficult for some people bc you are no longer in your original class, have to make new friends with people in your new class. Maybe some embarassment as well. In terms of residencies, I think it depends. I’ve known people who extended who got into good residencies. I even knew one alum who extended and got into Ortho. So just bc you extend it definitely isn’t close to being the end of the world which some may initially think.
Most of your class will be BA/MD students. The only time traditional students (who have completed their Bachelor’s, taken the MCAT, etc.) enroll is to make up for Years 1-2 attrition to bring the class back up to the original number. They now enter in the second semester of Year 2 bc of Human Structure Function.
This can be good or bad depending on how you look at it. It can be hard to get to know other people in other majors and fields. It’s good in that you have a cohesive group of people that you will get to know for 6 years. Bad in that any people you don’t like will be with you that long, although you get to meet many new people in your Docent group on Hospital Hill when you start Year 3.
Demographics - I would say most in-staters are from the KC and St. Louis (and its suburbs) areas. Much of those from St. Louis come from very well to do schools although there are definitely public ones: Marquette, St. Charles, Ladue Horton, MICDS, Villa Duchesne, Parkway, etc. Kansas City - Blue Springs, Pembroke, Raytown, Lee’s Summit, Barstow, Liberty, St. Pius, etc.
Other cities/towns in Missouri where people come from: Springfield, Branson, Liberty, Joplin, some very rural towns.
Outside of Missouri: ones that I knew were from states like California (many come from here because unlike most states I’ve heard it can be difficult for California residents to get into medical school in their home state), Texas, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Oklahoma, Kansas.
Income - this can vary, but especially in the regional and out-of-state groups, I would say that families usually come from very affluent/rich backgrounds, many of them physician families, many of them Asian.
Race - Huge percentage Asian. You cited an article that said the percentage of Asians in the program is double that of most American medical schools, 40% - definitely true. A lot of people from Asian families see UMKC’s BA/MD program as a straight, direct shot – right after high school, save 2 years, no MCAT, straight to residency, especially since many European/Asian med schools are 6 years in length. Those who are black tend to veer more toward African, although there are some of African-American descent. Almost negligible Hispanic, Native American, etc.
Although it may seem like they know what they’re doing in turning 18 year olds into doctors by 24 years, it’s really much more complicated than that. Don’t go with the assumption that you’ll be helped completely along any differently. The expectations are higher of students and can sometimes be unrealistic of what is asked of high school students entering a BA/MD program.