Minority Faculty Promotions in Academic Medicine Lag Behind Those of White Counterparts

The representation of minority medical school faculty in academic medicine has steadily increased in recent years, but their rates of promotion continue to lag behind those of White faculty, according to a new study by the Association of American Medical Colleges. The AAMC's research, published in the Sept. 6 Journal of the American Medical Association and entitled "Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Faculty Promotion in Academic Medicine," shows that among medical school faculty members who became assistant or associate professors between 1980 and 1989, minority faculty were less likely than White faculty to be promoted by 1997.
"The results highlight the need for medical schools to examine the reasons that racial/ethnic disparities in promotion exist in their institution," write AAMC authors Dr. Di Fang, Dr. Ernest Moy, Lois Colburn and Jeanne Hurley. "Specifically, they may be encouraged to review promotion criteria that may place too much emphasis on basic research and undervalue contributions in education, administration and community service often made by minority faculty."