Reasons for migration among medical students from Karachi

Abstract

Over 95% of Aga Khan University (AKU) and over 65% of Baqai University (BU) final-year medical students intend to proceed abroad for their postgraduate training. The 2 most important factors behind this intent as pointed out by the students are poor salary structure (AKU mean score 8.94 +/- 1.73, BU mean score 7.14 +/- 2.6) and poor quality of training in the home country (AKU mean score 9.20 +/- 1.20, BU mean score 8.68 +/- 2.03). Other interesting factors captured through the open-ended questions were the poor work environment and lack of rigor in teaching of residents in domestic university hospitals. Over 50% of final-year medical students cited these issues as major reasons behind their decision to migrate.