Charles Sturt University and La Trobe are seeking approval for a new medical school at Orange, Bendigo and Wagga Wagga campuses to allow students the opportunity to study medicine without moving to the city. 

However, RDAA president Dennis Pashen said there needed to be more than just building the regional schools. 

"You're probably just increasing the number of medical graduates. You need to follow the evidence for what actually works," he said. 

Professor Pashen said there were additional known factors, such as growing up in rural areas and interning in country towns, which directly linked to doctors remaining in the bush. 

He said every positive experience medical students had in rural areas increased the likelihood they would remain there to work. 

The RDAA has frequently stressed the importance for medical graduates to be offered the opportunity to train in rural areas. 

"The Rural Doctors Association are trying to make a pathway from university to graduation to practice," Professor Pashen said. 

"With the increasing numbers of medical school graduates, rural training places must be allocated to those applicants who have a genuine interest in rural practice."