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Published on: May 28, 2007
Do Multiple Mini-Interview and Traditional Interview Scores Differ in Their Associations With Acceptance Offers
Anthony Jerant1, Mark C Henderson, Erin Griffin
1A. Jerant is professor and chair, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of California, Davis, School of Medicine, Sacramento, California. M.C. Henderson is professor, Division of General Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, and associate dean, Admissions and Outreach, University of California, Davis, School of Medicine, Sacramento, California. E. Griffin is evaluation specialist, Research and Evaluation Outcomes Unit, University of California, Davis, School of Medicine, Sacramento, California. T.R. Hall is professor, Department of Radiology, and associate dean for admissions, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California. C.J. Kelly is professor, Department of Medicine, and associate dean for admissions and student affairs, University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, San Diego, California. E.M. Peterson is professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and associate dean for admissions, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, California. D. Wofsy is professor, Department of Medicine, and associate dean for admissions, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, San Francisco, California. P. Franks is professor, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of California, Davis, School of Medicine, Sacramento, California.
Purpose:
In single-school studies, multiple mini-interview (MMI) and traditional interview (TI) scores are associated with acceptance offers. Unexamined is whether scores at one school are associated with acceptance at other schools; such analyses would mitigate single-school design biases and better estimate how well interviews capture desired applicant attributes. Using data from the 5 California Longitudinal Evaluation of Admissions Practices (CA-LEAP) medical schools, the authors examined associations of MMI and TI scores with acceptance offers within and across schools.
Method:
The analyses included applicants who interviewed at ≥1 CA-LEAP school during the 2011-2013 admissions cycles. Three CA-LEAP schools employed TIs and 2 employed MMIs. Interview scores were standardized (z scores: mean = 0, SD = 1), and associations with acceptance offers were examined within and across schools in analyses stratified by school, adjusting for applicant sociodemographics, academic metrics, year, and total number of interviews.
Results:
Of 4,993 applicants interviewed, 428 (8.6%) interviewed at both MMI schools, 681 (13.6%) at ≥2 TI schools, and 1,327 (26.6%) at ≥1 MMI and ≥1 TI school. For each school, acceptance was associated with interview score at that school and also with interview scores at the other 4 schools. Cross-school associations of MMI versus TI scores with acceptance did not differ statistically.
Conclusions:
Interview score at a given school was associated with acceptance at the other 4 schools, with no significant differences in associations for MMIs versus TIs. The findings suggest both MMIs and TIs captured attributes valued by admissions teams across CA-LEAP schools.
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