Scholarship success : Umthombo Youth Development Foundation : forum

The well-recognised shortage of healthcare workers in South Africa is compounded in rural areas due to the misdistribution of those in favour of urban areas. Numerous local and international studies have documented that students of rural origin are more likely to return to work in rural areas. However, rural health science students are underrepresented at South African universities. In 2006 Tumbo reported that only 26% of health science students were of rural origin despite 46% of the national population living in rural areas.