Designing a Situational Judgment Test for Use in Medical School Admissions.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Psychometrics
• Healthcare Professionalism

Background:

• Professional competencies are crucial for success in medical training and practice.
• Current medical school admissions often rely on interviews after significant applicant screening, potentially missing key competency data.
• Assessing professional competencies early and effectively is a challenge in high-volume admissions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the development, evaluation, and launch of the AAMC Situational Judgment Test (SJT) for medical school admissions.
• To assess core competencies essential for entering medical students, such as teamwork, ethics, and resilience.
• To provide an evidence-based tool supporting holistic review and identifying candidates with strong professional skills.

Main Methods:

• Development of the AAMC SJT based on core competencies for medical students.
• Evaluation of existing research on SJTs in employment, international medical education, and residency selection.
• Analysis of the need for SJTs by examining medical school derailers and admissions process gaps.

Main Results:

• Situational judgment test scores are positively associated with subsequent performance in various professional contexts.
• The AAMC SJT is designed to assess critical competencies like service orientation, social skills, and ethical responsibility.
• Existing research suggests SJTs can add significant value to the medical school admissions process.

Conclusions:

• The AAMC SJT offers a standardized method to assess professional competencies vital for medical school success.
• This assessment supports holistic review by providing objective data on candidate professionalism in high-volume settings.
• The development of the AAMC SJT aims to improve admissions while minimizing applicant burden and signaling the importance of preparedness in professionalism.