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Gender and Satisfaction with Mentorship In Medical School: A National Study

Purpose: Using the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) Graduation Questionnaire (GQ), we assess if males and females at all U.S. medical schools report differing experiences with satisfaction with faculty mentorship.  Secondarily, we assess the role of men\'s and women\'s scholarly projects and career plans as they relate to satisfaction with mentoring.

Background: Female physicians experience gender-based professional differences, such as lower compensation, slower rates of promotion, and decreased representation in leadership positions as compared to their male colleagues.  The way this gender-based professional inequity affects the experience of medical student mentees has yet to be elucidated in the literature.

Methods: Data were obtained from the AAMC GQ years 2016-2018.  Student satisfaction with faculty mentoring was analyzed by chi-squared and logistic regression.

Results: With an 82% response rate we analyzed data for 47,063 students; 51% were male and 49% female. When asked about satisfaction with faculty mentoring, 81% of males verses 79% of females reported being \"satisfied\" or \"very satisfied\" (p< 0.001). A higher proportion of males reported faculty were helpful to students with academic matters (60% versus 55%; p< 0.001) and with non-academic matters (58% versus 55%; p< 0.001) \"very often\" or \"always.\" Females were less likely to be satisfied with faculty mentoring even after controlling for participation in research with a faculty member and future research plans.

Discussions: This work serves as a needs assessment to encourage individual medical schools to investigate their own gender-based cultures regarding faculty representation and leadership to allow gender-equal mentorship of all students.

Topics: CREOG & APGO Annual Meeting, 2020, Faculty, Clerkship Director, Residency Director, Professionalism, Interpersonal & Communication Skills, GME, CME, UME, Advocacy,