Distinguished Faculty Lecture Series: Tania Jenkins, Sociology, Temple University

Not all doctors, it seems, are created equal. This talk will examine the construction and implications of status hierarchies among internal medicine residents along the lines of educational pedigree. I will explore how American-trained MDs come to enjoy higher status in the profession compared to international or osteopathic graduates, who disproportionately occupy less prestigious positions. I will conclude that by relying on informal status distinctions that equate status with merit and eclipse structural disadvantages, US-trained physicians are able to remain elite despite importing some of the world s best and brightest.