Perspectives of program directors regarding candidate selection for the Saudi Board of Restorative Dentistry program

Program directors (PDs) play a crucial role in selecting candidates for the Saudi Board of Restorative Dentistry (SBRD) program. However, their views on selection and possible differences in opinions based on candidate characteristics remain unelucidated.

This study surveyed restorative dentistry PDs in Saudi Arabia using a pre-validated questionnaire consisting of 30 questions grouped into seven domains to gather views on the selection process for the SBRD program. Responses from 30 participants were analyzed using means and standard deviations. We examined differences in PD variables, such as sex and years of experience using Student's t-tests. Variations related to geographic location, years of experience as a PD, and hospital setup were assessed using analysis of variance.

The top preferences of the PDs were working as service residents, skill and reputation during electives, and dressing well for interviews. Electives abroad, multiple recommendation letters, and being on the dean's honor list were less important. Interview was the most favored domain (4.04 ± 0.78), followed by service and electives (4.01 ± 0.47); recommendations were the least favored (3.41 ± 0.77). While differences existed among variables, they weren't statistically significant, except for the interview domain (p = 0.015), where experienced PDs relied more on interviews compared to first-time PDs.

PDs showed diverse responses to all evaluated factors. Interviews and service/electives were most preferred. Service residencies, skills/reputation during electives, and being well dressed during interviews were favored for candidate selection. However, the results should be interpreted cautiously, given the potential limitations of statistical power associated with relatively small sample size.