Volume 6, Number 4 (Fall) 1971
Sloan, Frank A. 1971. "The Demand for Higher Education: The Case of Medical School Applicants." Journal of Human Resources 6(4):466-489.
This study analyzes determinants of student demand for medical education. Two series--total applicants to medical schools and medical school applicants with superior college records--are studied. The results indicate that student career decisions are strongly related to interoccupational differences in tuition and expected incomes. Students with "A" college records are somewhat less responsive to monetary incentives. Substantial increases in medical school tuition and fees and relatively low stipend levels have decreased student interest in medicine as a career. Income differentials also have an impact. The supply of medical education, measured by the probability of a student being accepted, has a positive effect on demand.
The author, formerly in the Economics Department, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif., is now in the Department of Economics, University of Florida. Any views expressed in this article are those of the author. They should not be interpreted as reflecting the view of The RAND Corporation or the official opinion or policy of any of its government or private research sponsors. The article is based on parts of the author's Ph.D. dissertation. He is indebted to John Dunlop, Ralph Berry, Martin Feldstein, and Joseph Newhouse for a number of useful comments and to the U.S. Public Health Service for financial support.
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