The Large Racial Gap in Medical School Faculty

Data from the Association of American Medical Colleges shows that in 2016 there were 5,075 Black or African American faculty at U.S. medical schools. They made up just 3 percent of all faculty members at medical schools. Among the black faculty members were 2,835 women and 2,466 men. African Americans were the only racial/ethnic group where women outnumbered men in medical school faculty. (White women made up 37.3 percent of all White faculty at U.S. medical schools in 2016.)

If we break down the date by faculty rank, we find that in 2016 there were 579 Black full professors at U.S. medical schools. They made up 1.6 percent of all full professors. Black full professors made up 11.4 percent of all Black medical school faculty. In contrast, White full professors made up 27.5 percent of all White medical school faculty members.

In 2016, there were 714 Black associate professors at medical schools. They made up 2.1 percent of all associate professors. Blacks made up 3.8 percent of all assistant professors.

If we include gender data, we see that in 2016, there were 379 Black men who served as full professors compared to only 200 Black women. Men also made up a slight majority of all Black associate professors. But women were 59.6 percent of all Black assistant professors and 66.9 percent of all Black instructors at U.S. medical schools.

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