Only 12% of medical students stick with radiology from matriculation to graduation
Only 12.2% of medical students stick with radiology as a specialty from matriculation to graduation, one physician noted on Monday.
Meanwhile, about 52.1% of students stay with orthopedics from start to finish, placing it No. 1 ahead of neurosurgery (41.5%) and pediatrics (41.4%). Radiology is among the bottom six in lowest rate of persistence, with vascular surgery holding the bottom number at 6.3%.
The findings are derived from the 2023 Association of American Medical College’s Report on Residents, originally released in November. Virginia nephrologist J. Bryan Carmody, MD, adapted the data to create a handy chart, shared on social media Monday. The post had garnered over 45,000 views on X.com by Tuesday.
“Most medical students change their intended specialty over the course of medical school. Only 27% end up in the same specialty they said they were most considering at matriculation,” wrote Carmody, who also is an associate professor and “advocate for medical students,” according to his profile. “But interestingly, that proportion varies widely by specialty.”
Carmody also noted that only about 15% of incoming medical students assert that they are undecided on a specialty at matriculation. The post had generated over a dozen responses as of Tuesday.
“My guess would be that students don't really know what's involved in each specialty at start of med school, so many switches occur,” wrote cardiologist Jason Ryan, MD, of West Hartford, Connecticut. “The specialties to the left of the chart (fewer switches) seem to be the ones that are easier to understand as an outsider before starting school.”
“I continue to be amazed by how many people go to med school with no idea what kind of doctor they want to be,” added Patrick Hansma, DO, a pathologist and professor based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. “Decide to accumulate that level of debt with no idea what kind of job you want? That’s crazy to me. Pathology, ER, radiology, ophtho, etc., are NOTHING alike.”
“Tracks [with] my experience. Ortho from day one,” wrote Paul Kraemer, MD, of Carmel, Indiana. “Prob true for most of my classmates as well also agree on peds—surprisingly persistent.”
The original data from AAMC included 607 individuals who marked radiology as their initial specialty of choice. Of those, 74 (or 12.2%) stuck with radiology through the process. About 61.6% reported a new specialty, 19.3% labeled themselves as undecided, and 6.9% did not respond to the final questionnaire. 
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.