Association between medical school radiology curricula and application rates to US radiology residency programs

Data are limited on how radiology curricula vary across US medical schools and the association between characteristics of these curricula and application rates to radiology residency programs. The purpose of this study was to gather more information about medical school radiology curricula and to determine the association between radiology education and application rates to radiology residency programs.

An anonymous web-based survey was e-mailed to residency program directors affiliated with 129 accredited US medical schools. Residency program directors were instructed to forward the survey to a radiology clerkship director or complete the survey themselves. Electronic Residency Application Service data were also obtained for 122 participating medical schools.

Fifty-five of 122 schools responded, a response rate of 45%. The majority of medical schools (76%) had a dedicated radiology curriculum, which was most often offered in the third and fourth years. The majority (87%) of schools integrated radiology education into other courses throughout all 4 years. The application data revealed that application rates were similar across schools, ranging from 6% to 8%. Applications rates did not significantly vary across several characteristics of educational curricula.

Although schools vary in the characteristics of radiology education, application rates to radiology residency programs are similar across schools and are not associated with specific characteristics of these educational programs. This lack of an association may be explained by universal exposure of medical students to radiology curricula and the fact that a career choice is a complex process that involves multiple factors.