College majors and career choices of minority high school student research apprentices.

This study's purpose was to determine the college majors and career choices of students who participated in the Minority High School Student Research Apprentice Program (MHSSRAP) at the Medical College of Georgia School of Medicine, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. A tracking system was initiated to follow up the participants to determine college majors during matriculation and career choices after graduation. The tracking included telephone interviews and questionnaires mailed to 55 participants from 1981 to 1994, the length of the program. The typical student in the cohort is an African-American man residing in a metropolitan area (70%) of Georgia. Sixty percent of the research apprentices come from working class parents. All 55 (100%) apprentices matriculated to a college or university. Thirty-one students (56%) had biology as their undergraduate major in college; 15%, liberal arts; 11%, chemistry; 7%, allied health disciplines; and 11%, other. Twenty-nine (53%) of these students graduated from college. Twenty-three of 29 (79%) graduates chose a medical or health science career, and 17 of 29 students (59%) matriculated into medical school. In Georgia, 30.1% of white students graduate from high school, and 14.6% obtain a baccalaureate degree. In contrast, 28% of blacks graduate from high school, and 7.5% graduate from college. We concluded that the Minority High School Student Research Apprentice Program is an important link in the student pipeline from high school to research careers and/or biomedical science careers. The research experience at an academic medical center and a college science major have great influence in the choice of medicine as a career.