Initial Experiences With a 2-Stage Residency Interview Process.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Residency Selection
• Recruitment Strategies

Background:

• Virtual interviews present challenges for assessing program fit.
• Concerns exist regarding the indirect evaluative impact of in-person interactions.
• Nonevaluative second looks may not remain truly nonevaluative.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a hybrid interview structure combining virtual and in-person components.
• To assess the feasibility and acceptability of this novel interview process.
• To address the limitations of fully virtual recruitment in graduate medical education.

Main Methods:

• A two-phase selection process was used for general surgery residency applications.
• Phase 1 involved holistic review; Phase 2 included virtual interviews followed by optional in-person interviews.
• Applicant and faculty surveys were administered to gauge perceptions of fairness and feasibility.

Main Results:

• The two-stage interview process was successfully implemented for 1175 applications.
• 98.9% of invited applicants completed the virtual interview; 43.6% advanced to the second round.
• 92.6% of surveyed applicants found the process fair, while 75% questioned the nonevaluative nature of second looks.

Conclusions:

• A hybrid interview model (virtual followed by in-person) is feasible for residency selection.
• This structure was perceived as fair and beneficial by general surgery applicants.
• The findings support a blended approach to recruitment in medical education.