The Attractiveness of Internal Medicine: A Qualitative Analysis of the Experiences of Female and Male Medical Students

ical student interest in internal medicine. • Design: Qualitative analysis of 500 essays from respondents who participated in a national survey of graduating medical students from the class of 1990 in 16 medical schools. Medical students were asked the open-ended question, "What suggestions do you have for improving the attractiveness of internal medicine?" A model of career choice was developed for the anal-ysis that included the following factors: ambulatory care exposure and primary care (including relationships with patients); attending physician-student interactions and learning climate; stress and workload; income and prestige; and intellectual stimulation. • Participants: The original survey included 1650 fourth-year medical students; 500 essay respondents were strat