Applications for residency programs in obstetrics and gynecology, 1996-1997

The purpose of this work is to report on application patterns for residency positions in obstetrics and gynecology.

The Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) records each application for a position in a participating residency program. In the 1996-97 application cycle, all but 16 obstetrics and gynecology residency programs participated. Electronic records were analyzed to obtain a statistical picture of the residency application process.

Applications for residency positions in obstetrics and gynecology were processed for 1607 graduates of US medical schools, including 110 graduates of osteopathic medical schools. Canadian applicants were six, and other foreign applicants numbered 524. More than two-thirds of US applicants were women, and nine of ten were citizens or permanent residents. Most applicants sent official United States Medical Licensure Examination (USMLE) transcripts to all programs to which they applied. Ninety-five percent of applicants supplied an e-mail address.

The introduction of ERAS has been successful for obstetrics and gynecology and has provided new information about patterns of applications. The ease of application using the electronic system did not lead to a substantial increase in numbers of applications. Statistics regarding the number of applicants, ratio of women to men, and participation of foreign medical graduates will be of interest to manpower planners.