Despite a new government initiative aimed at making Austria more attractive to future doctors, a third of medical graduates in the country still do not end up working at local institutions, ORF has reported.

The scheme commits prospective medical specialists to work for a certain period in a designated federal state or at specific state institutions, such as the Ministry of the Interior, the Austrian Armed Forces or the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK).

In return, participants receive a scholarship and a preferential advantage in the entrance exam for the degree program, requiring them to achieve only 75% of the necessary points.

However, ORF’s report reveals that only 49 of the 85 medical study places allocated for this model will be filled this winter semester. Notably, the Ministry of the Interior, which offered three study programmes and job placements, was unable to fill any of its positions.

After a pre-selection process, five candidates took the entrance test, but none achieved the required score.

The federal states of Vorarlberg (offering three places) and Burgenland (offering two places) also failed to secure any candidates. Prospective students either performed exceptionally well and were awarded regular places or did not score high enough. Other provinces managed to fill at least some of their places, with Vienna successfully finding ten suitable candidates. The ÖGK managed to fill six out of thirteen places, according to ORF’s research.

In contrast, the Austrian Armed Forces were successful in filling all ten places reserved for future military doctors.