Abstract
Objective: As new paradigms for cardiothoracic surgery training emerged in recent years, the traditional 2- or 3-year pathway has persisted as an option for trainees completing general surgery residencies. Although the applicant pool for 6-year integrated cardiothoracic surgery training programs has been superficially explored, little data exist characterizing those applicants to the traditional cardiothoracic surgery training pathway and the influence of 6-year integrated expansion on the traditional applicant pool. Methods: We reviewed materials from candidates applying to a single 2-year cardiothoracic surgery training program between 2015 and 2020. Descriptive and comparative analyses of multiple characteristics were performed over the years of the study. Results: During the years 2015 through 2020, we received 571 applications, accounting for 72% of the total National Residency Matching Program applicant pool. We saw no significant trends in numbers of peer-reviewed publications or presentations. There was a minimal year-to-year increase in number of first-authored posters, 2.04 in 2015 to 2.13 in 2020 (P = .008). Online publications, book chapters, and other publications were stable throughout the study period. Applicants consistently provided an average of 3.6 letters of recommendation, 1.9 from cardiothoracic surgery faculty. Mean in-service score percentiles were stable at the 54th percentile, whereas US Medical Licensing Examination scores increased. Conclusions: Despite expansion of the 6-year integrated pathway to cardiothoracic surgery, we have seen no substantial year-to-year changes in attributes of traditional applicants. Our findings suggest that the cardiothoracic surgery applicant pool continues to be composed of a stable group of highly productive trainees. Future initiatives in candidate selection should emphasize interview strategies to highlight aspects of grit, emotional intelligence, and team dynamics.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 1743-1750 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery |
Volume | 165 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 2023 |
Keywords
- cognitive attributes in applicants
- integrated cardiothoracic residency
- noncognitive attributes in applicants
- traditional cardiothoracic fellowship
- trends in applicants
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Surgery
- Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine
- Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine