Applicants' Perspectives of the Urology Residency Match Process

Despite the competitiveness and high stakes of the urology residency match little research has focused on the application process from the applicants' perspective.

In April 2018 we e-mailed a 23-question multiple-choice survey to all applicants to the 2018 urology residency match.

Of the 436 applicants 186 (42.7%) completed our survey. Among the most interesting findings was that most applicants (65.1%) would prefer limiting the number of applications per applicant to 60 or fewer, and the vast majority of applicants (89.8%) would prefer a system where interviews are organized by geographic region to reduce cross-country travel. Most applicants (86.6%) also prefer the January match over the National Resident Matching Program match in March.

This study provides applicants' perspectives of the urology residency match process as well as a working framework for improving the application process at the national and individual program levels. Combining these findings with the perspective of the residency program directors should provide the optimal guidance for the structure of the match process going forward.