Grade Inflation and Selection of students for medical education in Sri Lanka: the case for Merit and Equity

Selecting students for medical education is a complex task. In Sri Lanka it is made even more complex due to the high demand and competitive nature of admission to medical schools. The selection process needs to be accountable to the society by selecting undergraduates with the potential to become good doctors who are competent to address health needs of the country; it also needs to be fair to applicants, who are diverse, unified only by their common desire to become doctors. Selection policies must also ensure equity, through provisions for educationally disadvantaged students as from underprivileged or rural areas. Similarly, expanding opportunities of access to private and fee-levying medical education leads to issues related to equity.