Integrated thoracic residency program applicants: the best and the brightest?

Comparative data are lacking on the numbers and nature of applicants to North American 6-year integrated thoracic residency and traditional thoracic fellowship programs. Candidates applying within the first 3 months of the application cycles to the integrated and traditional thoracic surgery residency programs starting in 2011 at Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, were reviewed. The overall ratio of applicants to positions was 27:1 for the traditional program and 131:1 for the integrated program. There was no significant difference in the proportion of female applicants (22% vs 16%, p = 0.57). Almost half of integrated program applicants were final-year medical students, 20% of whom attended institutions with integrated programs. Traditional program applicants on average had 4 years surgery residency experience compared with the average of 3 years reported by the 46% of applicants to the integrated program who had postgraduate clinical experience. More than half of integrated program applicants were overseas graduates. Shortlisted integrated applicants had significantly greater United States Medical Licensing Examination scores and peer reviewed publications than shortlisted traditional applicants and were more likely to hold higher degrees and national research funding. Much of the dramatic increase in the number of applicants to North American integrated thoracic residency programs has been driven by experienced international graduates. The caliber of applicants is strong, but efforts are needed to increase the appeal of thoracic surgery training to North American medical students if the goals of integrated programs are to be realized.

Chikwe J ，Brewer Z ，Goldstone AB ，Adams DH ... -  《-》

A comparison of 0 + 5 versus 5 + 2 applicants to vascular surgery training programs.

The new integrated 0 + 5 vascular surgery (VS) training paradigm introduced in 2007 required program directors and faculty to reconsider recruiting methods and exposure of medical students to VS. As a means to identify variables important for recruitment of 0 + 5 VS applicants, we sought to analyze national 0 + 5 VS residency application trends and to compare medical school demographics of applicants to both our 0 + 5 residency and 5 + 2 fellowship programs. Electronic Residency Application Service and National Resident Matching Program online public databases were queried to evaluate nationwide trends in the number of applicants to integrated VS residency programs between 2007 and 2010. Demographic data from Electronic Residency Application Service applications submitted to our institution's 0 + 5 and 5 + 2 VS training programs during the same time period were reviewed. From 2008 to 2011, there were 190 applicants to our 0 + 5 VS residency program and 161 applicants to our 5 + 2 fellowship program, with 127 (66.8%) and 122 (75.8%) being United States medical graduates, respectively. Annual application volume to our programs over these years remained stable for both training pathways (range, 39-49 for 0 + 5 integrated; range, 39-43 for 5 + 2 traditional). Nationally, applications to 0 + 5 programs increased sixfold over the same time period (52 in 2007 to 340 applicants in 2010; P < .001), far exceeding the available training positions. Compared with applicants to the 5 + 2 VS fellowships, medical students applying to the 0 + 5 programs are more likely to be female, be slightly older, have additional postgraduate degrees and publications, have higher United States Medical Licensure Examination test scores, and are more likely to be in the top quartile of their medical school class. Nationwide interest in the 0 + 5 vascular surgery residency training paradigm continues to significantly increase. Significant differences exist between the cohorts of 0 + 5 residency and 5 + 2 fellowship program applicants at the completion of medical school, suggesting that 0 + 5 VS residency programs are attracting a different medical student population to the VS specialty. VS program directors should continue to foster interest in this new applicant pool through early exposure, mentorship, and extracurricular research activities.

Zayed MA ，Dalman RL ，Lee JT 《-》

An increasing demand for integrated vascular residency training far outweighs the limited supply of positions.

Schanzer A ，Nahmias J ，Korenda K ，Eslami M ，Arous E ，Messina L ... -  《-》

Impact of a six-year integrated thoracic surgery training program at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Thoracic residency program enrollment continues to decline. While job market and decreasing reimbursements are often cited as the main reasons, length of and format of training may also be significant. The Medical College of Wisconsin established an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-approved 6-year integrated thoracic training program. The number and characteristics of applicants to the 6-year program were then compared with previous applicants applying to the traditional 2-year program. Applicants to the 6-year integrated program scored higher on the United States Medical Licensing Examination part 1 and part 2 than previous applicants to the traditional 2-year program. The 6-year applicants also were more published and a greater percentage of them held other advanced degrees. Institution of a 6-year integrated thoracic surgery training program at the Medical College of Wisconsin led to a significant increase in number of applications. Additionally, the 6-year applicants appeared to be more academically accomplished than previous applicants to the traditional 2-year program. While early in the experience, it appears that interest in thoracic surgery is high among medical students and institution of a 6-year program has the potential to once again attract the "best and the brightest" to this specialty.

Gasparri MG ，Tisol WB ，Masroor S 《-》

A survey of demographics, motivations, and backgrounds among applicants to the integrated 0 + 5 vascular surgery residency.

Lee JT ，Teshome M ，de Virgilio C ，Ishaque B ，Qiu M ，Dalman RL ... -  《-》