Narrative information obtained during student selection predicts problematic study behavior

Up to now, student selection for medical schools is merely used to decide which applicants will be admitted. We investigated whether narrative information obtained during multiple mini-interviews (MMIs) can also be used to predict problematic study behavior.

A retrospective exploratory study was performed on students who were selected into a four-year research master's program Physician-Clinical Investigator in 2007 and 2008 (n = 60). First, counselors were asked for the most prevalent non-cognitive problems among their students. Second, MMI notes were analyzed to identify potential indicators for these problems. Third, a case-control study was performed to investigate the association between students exhibiting the non-cognitive problems and the presence of indicators for these problems in their MMI notes.

The most prevalent non-cognitive problems concerned planning and self-reflection. Potential indicators for these problems were identified in randomly chosen MMI notes. The case-control analysis demonstrated a significant association between indicators in the notes and actual planning problems (odds ratio: 9.33, p = 0.003). No such evidence was found for self-reflection-related problems (odds ratio: 1.39, p = 0.68).

Narrative information obtained during MMIs contains predictive indicators for planning-related problems during study. This information would be useful for early identification of students-at-risk, which would enable focused counseling and interventions to improve their academic achievement.