What type of information are oral and maxillofacial surgery fellowship websites providing applicants?

Prior research across various medical specialties has shown that a program's online presence can significantly influence an applicant's decision to pursue advanced training. As oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMS) fellowship opportunities expand, residents increasingly depend on the internet to compare programs and gather information about postgraduate options, making accessible and comprehensive website content essential. This study evaluates the online information available for OMS fellowship programs and identifies weaknesses relative to fellowship websites in other medical specialties.

A cross-sectional review of OMS fellowship websites (OMSFWs) was performed, assessing predetermined criteria categorized as recruitment content or educational content. These criteria were applied to published literature regarding websites in other medical specialties for comparison. Fellowship type served as the primary predictor variable, classified into head and neck oncology, cleft and craniofacial surgery, and other craniomaxillofacial subspecialties. Additional variables included practice setting, geographic region, number of faculty, and number of fellows.

OMSFWs met 58.6% of recruitment-related criteria but only 14.2% of educational criteria, representing a substantial gap and a significant deficiency when compared with fellowship websites in other surgical disciplines (P < .0001).

These findings demonstrate notable shortcomings in the online presence of OMS fellowship programs compared to other specialties and emphasize the need for improved website content to better support applicants seeking clear, complete, and reliable information.