Analysis showed the male applicants for medical school did slightly better in the Leaving Cert than female applicants in each of the years under consideration, and also outperformed them in the HPAT test. Photograph: Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland

Boys are outperforming girls academically in the quest for medical school places even though girls generally do better in the Leaving Certificate, according to a new study.

Male applicants for medical school outperform females in both the Leaving Cert and the HPAT exam which was introduced as an additional test for entry to medical school in 2009, the research by UCC scientists shows.

The study, published in the Irish Medical Journal, finds no evidence of a gender bias linked to the Health Professionals Admissions Test (HPAT), which has been criticised in some quarters for disadvantaging female candidates.

Medicine, once a male-dominated profession, has become increasingly feminised in recent years, with women now comprising a majority of medical students. However, since the introduction of HPAT, a multiple-choice test of reasoning and problem-solving skills, the proportion of male entrants to medical schools has increased again. The test counts for about one-third of the points for entry, with the Leaving Cert counting for the rest.

Gender differencesThe UCC team looked at the performance of all applicants for medicine in the years 2009-2011 according to gender. Women accounted for the majority of applications, and the majority of eligible applications once the matriculation requirement and a requirement for a minimum of 480 Leaving Cert points were fulfilled.

The analysis showed the male applicants for medical school did slightly better in the Leaving Cert than female applicants in each of the years under consideration, and also outperformed them in the HPAT test.

Surprise resultThis finding surprised us as it is known that females generally outperform males in such tests and previous female dominance in medical school was secondary to superior Leaving Certificate performance, said Dr Siun OFlynn, head of medical education at UCCs school of medicine.

We wonder whether external factors such as the prevailing economic climate may have influenced applicant behaviour.

It is known that male applications to medicine tend to increase in times of economic uncertainty. Perhaps the apparent security offered by a career in medicine has made such an option more attractive to high academic performing males in Ireland.

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Boys outperform girls for medical school