Unpopular opinion: NEET needs to test empathy and communication, not just memory
NEET selects for one skill: memorizing and recalling factual information under pressure. That's a legitimate skill. But it's maybe 30% of what being a good doctor requires.
The other 70%: Can you communicate clearly with a scared patient? Can you handle a family that's angry and grieving? Can you make decisions under uncertainty with incomplete information? Can you work in a team where hierarchies are complex? Can you maintain your mental health under chronic stress? Can you show empathy after your 40th patient when you're exhausted?
None of these are tested. None of these are screened for. We select doctors based entirely on their ability to memorize MCQs and then act surprised when the profession has communication failures and burnout.
I'm not saying empathy can be tested in an exam. But it can be assessed. Structured interviews. Situational judgment tests. Communication stations like the UK's medical school interviews. These are imperfect but they're better than pretending that ranking students by memory alone produces the best doctors.
Some of the most brilliant students in my batch are terrible with patients. Some of the average students are exceptional clinicians because they connect, listen, and communicate. The entrance exam predicted nothing about clinical ability.
We need to at least try to select for the full range of skills medicine requires. Right now we're filtering for one dimension and hoping the rest develops on its own. Sometimes it does. Often it doesn't.