Radiology Challenging Case Competition: A Mentoring/Education Opportunity for Medical Students

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Radiology Residency Training
• Faculty Mentorship

Background:

• Medical students applying for Radiology residency often face challenges accessing faculty mentors.
• Improving faculty access is crucial for enhancing student preparedness for residency applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate an educational intervention designed to improve faculty access for medical students applying to Radiology residency.
• To assess the impact of a case competition and mentorship program on student preparedness for residency interviews.

Main Methods:

• An educational intervention involving faculty mentorship and a standardized case presentation template was implemented.
• The program evolved into an annual case competition with oral presentations preceding the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) submission.
• Student feedback was collected via surveys to assess faculty support, learning experience, and application usefulness.

Main Results:

• High student participation (97.4%) and efficient faculty mentor matching were achieved.
• Student surveys indicated highly favorable ratings for faculty support and the learning experience (mean 4.52-5.0/5).
• Participants reported feeling more prepared for residency interviews (mean 4.58/5).

Conclusions:

• The mentoring and case competition intervention effectively matched students with faculty mentors.
• The program was highly rated by students, who reported increased confidence and preparedness for residency interviews.