AACOM Funds Three Residency Interview Research Projects

In its continuing efforts to establish standards of excellence for undergraduate and graduate medical education, the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) recently awarded three $5,000 grants exploring the impact of interview format and preparation on various groups of students and institutions:

• Lincoln Memorial University – DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine: Does Having an Alumni Mentor Impact the Number of Virtual or In Person Residency Interviews Obtained by a 4th Year Medical Student?
  • Principal Investigators: Amy Drittler, Lisa Shelburne

• University of North Texas Health Science Center-Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine: Impact of Innovative Interviewing Course on Residency Preparedness: A Mixed-Methods Analysis 
  • Principal Investigator: Janet M. Lieto, DO
  • Co-Investigators: Amany Hasan, BPharm, PhD; Melva Landrum; Lin Nelson

     

• A Partnership between California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine and Prime West Consortium: Impact of Virtual Interviews on Osteopathic Medical Students and International Medical Graduates in Rural and Underserved Regions of California through the Prime West Consortium
  • Principal Investigators: Nohemi Barriga, PsyD; Duc Chang, MD; Angel Huape; Hamed Shalikar, MD (Prime West Consortium)

The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the interview landscape for residency programs from mostly in-person interviews to virtual interview processes in most cases. These year-long grants acknowledge that research is needed to evaluate how different interview formats affect students and institutions. They follow AACOM’s recommendations on interview format for entry into medical school and residency and the recognition of the scant amount of data surrounding the use and impact of interview formats during these critical points in a medical student’s career. Through AACOM’s UME-GME Task Force and its Transition to Residency Working Group, the awarded proposals were selected for their innovative approaches to study interview formats and the bridge of knowledge that their results can provide.

"We believe that further due diligence is needed to study the impact of interview format on students of different backgrounds and institutions in a variety of settings including rural and underserved,” said Brian Kessler, DO, AACOM UME-GME Task Force chair. “We are proud to support our awardees in their research and we will engage in continued conversations about this topic and hope this initiative generates more interest among residency programs, medical schools and other key stakeholders."

"The UME-GME Task Force through its Transition in Residency Working Group is excited to be a part of this initiative looking into interview format and its impact on the transition to residency. We believe that with further research, we will be best equipped to provide recommendations for our students and colleges as we approach this critical time in students' professional careers," added Tami Hendriksz, DO, AACOM UME-GME Task Force’s Transition to Residency Working Group chair.