Table 2 Specialty preferences of medical students (N = 9499)

Clinical

Medical

Internal medicine

478 (27.4)*

283 (29.9)*

461 (31.3)*

326 (34.2)*

368 (28.8)*

282 (34.6)*

350 (27.2)*

287 (28.8)*

2 835 (29.8)

Psychiatry

144 (8.2)*

98 (10.3)*

94 (6.4)

84 (8.8)

82 (6.4)

68 (8.3)

83 (6.4)

91 (9.1)

744 (7.8)

Pediatrics

51 (2.9)*

101 (10.7)*

45 (3.1)*

105 (11.0)*

58 (4.5)*

110 (13.5)*

50 (3.9)*

123 (12.3)*

643 (6.8)

Dermatology

79 (4.5)

59 (6.2)

45 (3.1)

65 (6.8)

48 (3.8)

35 (4.3)

39 (3.0)

50 (5.0)

420 (4.4)

Neurology

52 (3.0)

48 (5.1)

56 (3.8)

50 (5.2)

48 (3.8)

39 (4.8)

47 (3.6)

38 (3.8)

378 (4.0)

Rehabilitative medicine

75 (4.3)*

36 (3.8)*

57 (3.9)*

24 (2.5)*

48 (3.8)*

14 (1.7)*

51 (4.0)*

32 (3.2)*

337 (3.5)

Diagnostic radiology

57 (3.3)*

32 (3.4)*

37 (2.5)

43 (4.5)

35 (2.7)

26 (3.2)

33 (2.6)

46 (4.6)

309 (3.3)

Anesthesiology

37 (2.1)

30 (3.2)

39 (2.6)

28 (2.9)

35 (2.7)*

20 (2.5)*

43 (3.3)

42 (4.2)

274 (2.9)

Family medicine

22 (1.3)

20 (2.1)

23 (1.6)

33 (3.5)

23 (1.8)

23 (2.8)

24 (1.9)

37 (3.7)

205 (2.2)

Emergency medicine

22 (1.3)*

8 (0.8)*

24 (1.6)*

8 (0.8)*

21 (1.6)

12 (1.5)

18 (1.4)*

8 (0.8)*

121 (1.3)

Clinical pathology

6 (0.3)

7 (0.7)

3 (0.2)

4 (0.4)

6 (0.5)

5 (0.6)

2 (0.2)*

13 (1.3)*

46 (0.5)

Therapeutic radiology

8 (0.5)*

1 (0.1)*

6 (0.4)

1 (0.1)

3 (0.2)

5 (0.6)

12 (0.9)

5 (0.5)

41 (0.4)

Occupational and environmental medicine

5 (0.3)

0 (0.0)

4 (0.3)

0 (0.0)

8 (0.6)

3 (0.4)

12 (0.9)

5 (0.5)

37 (0.4)

Nuclear medicine

3 (0.2)

0 (0.0)

3 (0.2)

0 (0.0)

7 (0.5)

0 (0.0)

3 (0.2)

0 (0.0)

16 (0.2)

Tuberculosis

1 (0.1)

0 (0.0)

2 (0.1)

1 (0.1)

1 (0.1)

0 (0.0)

9 (0.7)*

1 (0.1)*

15 (0.2)

Subtotal

1 040 (59.5)*

723 (76.3)*

899 (61.0)*

772 (80.9)*

791 (62.0)*

642 (78.7)*

776 (60.2)*

778 (78.0)*

6 421 (67.6)

Surgical

Orthopedic surgery

257 (14.7)*

14 (1.5)*

222 (15.1)*

4 (0.4)*

169 (13.2)*

7 (0.9)*

174 (13.5)*

6 (0.6)*

853 (9.0)

General surgery

129 (7.4)*

67 (7.1)*

102 (6.9)*

46 (4.8)*

109 (8.5)*

50 (6.1)*

79 (6.1)*

51 (5.1)*

633 (6.7)

Ophthalmology

83 (4.8)*

50 (5.3)*

57 (3.9)*

27 (2.8)*

21 (1.6)

20 (2.5)

52 (4.0)

41 (4.1)

351 (3.7)

Neurosurgery

87 (5.0)*

20 (2.1)*

61 (4.1)*

21 (2.2)*

54 (4.2)*

5 (0.6)*

53 (4.1)*

7 (0.7)*

308 (3.2)

Otolaryngology

50 (2.9)*

16 (1.7)*

37 (2.5)*

18 (1.9)*

35 (2.7)*

13 (1.6)*

41 (3.2)

28 (2.8)

238 (2.5)

Plastic surgery

32 (1.8)*

2 (0.2)*

34 (2.3)*

14 (1.5)*

36 (2.8)*

12 (1.5)*

63 (4.9)*

16 (1.6)*

209 (2.2)

Obstetrics-gynecology

8 (0.5)

15 (1.6)

3 (0.2)*

31 (3.2)*

9 (0.7)*

38 (4.7)*

8 (0.6)*

45 (4.5)*

157 (1.7)

Cardiothoracic surgery

27 (1.5)*

14 (1.5)*

26 (1.8)*

6 (0.6)*

20 (1.6)*

6 (0.7)*

12 (0.9)

10 (1.0)

121 (1.3)

Urology

3 (0.2)

1 (0.1)

4 (0.3)

1 (0.1)

6 (0.5)

0 (0.0)

5 (0.4)

2 (0.2)

22 (0.2)

Subtotal

676 (38.7)*

199 (21.0)*

546 (37.1)*

168 (17.6)*

459 (36.0)*

151 (18.5)*

487 (37.8)*

206 (20.6)*

2 892 (30.4)

Nonclinical

Pathology

10 (0.6)

8 (0.8)

6 (0.4)

7 (0.7)

12 (0.9)

16 (2.0)

9 (0.7)

8 (0.8)

76 (0.8)

Basic science of medicine

17 (1.0)

9 (1.0)

16 (1.1)*

3 (0.3)*

9 (0.7)*

2 (0.2)*

11 (0.9)*

3 (0.3)*

70 (0.7)

Preventive medicine

4 (0.2)

8 (0.8)

6 (0.4)

4 (0.4)

5 (0.4)

5 (0.6)

5 (0.4)

3 (0.3)

40 (0.4)

Subtotal

31 (1.8)

25 (2.6)

28 (1.9)

14 (1.5)

26 (2.0)

23 (2.8)

25 (1.9)

14 (1.4)

186 (2.0)