Browsing by Subject "Virtual interviews"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Faculty Members' Perspective on Virtual Interviews for Medical Residency Matching during the COVID-19 Crisis: A National Survey
    (MDPI, 2021-12-22) Aljamaan, Fadi; Alkhattabi, Fadiah; Al-Eyadhy, Ayman; Alhaboob, Ali; Alharbi, Nasser S.; Alherbish, Adi; Almosned, Badr; Alobaylan, Mohammed; Alabdulkarim, Hayfa; Jamal, Amr; Alhaider, Sami A.; Alsaywid, Basim; Bashiri, Fahad A.; Barry, Mazin; Al-Tawfiq, Jaffar A.; Alhasan, Khalid; Temsah, Mohamad-Hani; Medicine, School of Medicine
    During the COVID-19 pandemic, conducting face-to-face medical residency interviews was challenging due to infection prevention precautions, social distancing, and travel restrictions. Virtual interviews were implemented by the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) as an alternative process for residency matching while striving to maintain the same quality standards. This national survey was conducted to assess the satisfaction and perceptions of faculty members' virtual interview performance in the assessment for the medical training residency programs. Among the participating 173 faculty members, 34.1% did not have previous experience with video-conferencing. The Zoom application was the most commonly used platform (65.9%). Most (89.6%) of the faculty perceived virtual interviews as "adequate" platforms on which the candidates could express themselves, while almost half of the faculty (53.8%) agreed that virtual interviews allowed them to accurately reach an impression about the candidates. Overall, 73.4% of faculty felt comfortable ranking the virtually interviewed candidates. We conclude that the acceptance of participating faculty members in the first Saudi medical residency training matching cycle virtual interviewing event was well-perceived. This study provides evidence for future application and research of virtual interviews in residency candidates' assessment, especially after the pandemic crisis resolves.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Is the changing landscape of fellowship recruitment during COVID-19 here to stay?
    (Elsevier, 2022-10) Gupta, Shreya; Arthur, L. Grier; Chandler, Nicole; Danielson, Paul; Downard, Cynthia; Ehrlich, Peter; Gaines, Barbara; Gray, Brian; Javid, Patrick; Lallier, Michel; Nwomeh, Benedict; Tagge, Edward; Weiss, Richard; Tsao, KuoJen; Garrison, Aaron P.; Mak, Grace; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Background The 2020 Pediatric Surgery (PS) fellowship selection process was heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. A review of lessons learned can help determine best practices for the future. The purpose of the study was to analyze the virtual interview experience and assess opportunities to improve the post-pandemic fellowship recruitment process. Study Design Using a 28-question survey of Program Directors (PDs) of PS fellowships as well as a 44-question survey of applicants to PS fellowships in the US and Canada, we gathered information on the recruitment process during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020). Dichotomous, multiple choice and open-ended questions about the changes in process, platforms used, format, comparison to on-site interviews and overall satisfaction were used for objective and subjective feedback. Results A 95% participation rate was recorded for the PD survey. 24 out of 55 programs (44%) changed their on-site interviews to virtual format due to the pandemic. Most PDs described their overall impression of virtual interviews as satisfactory (66%, 16/24) and did not have an impact on the applicant's success in the match (35/54; 65%). About 50% of PDs preferred to have on-site interviews with virtual screening in the future. While the participation rate from applicants was much less (26 of 70), responses confirmed our survey results. Majority preferred on-site interviews (17/26), 6 of which preferred virtual screening followed by on-site interviews. Conclusion Components of virtual screening and interviews were found to have benefits financially and from both time and stress perspectives, and thus might survive past the pandemic. Levels of Evidence Level IV
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Is the changing landscape of fellowship recruitment during COVID-19 here to stay?
    (Elsevier, 2022) Gupta, Shreya; Arthur, L. Grier; Chandler, Nicole; Danielson, Paul; Downard, Cynthia; Ehrlich, Peter; Gaines, Barbara; Gray, Brian; Javid, Patrick; Lallier, Michel; Nwomeh, Benedict; Tagge, Edward; Weiss, Richard; Tsao, KuoJen; Garrison, Aaron P.; Mak, Grace; Pediatrics, School of Medicine
    Background: The 2020 Pediatric Surgery (PS) fellowship selection process was heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. A review of lessons learned can help determine best practices for the future. The purpose of the study was to analyze the virtual interview experience and assess opportunities to improve the post-pandemic fellowship recruitment process. Study design: Using a 28-question survey of Program Directors (PDs) of PS fellowships as well as a 44-question survey of applicants to PS fellowships in the US and Canada, we gathered information on the recruitment process during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020). Dichotomous, multiple choice and open-ended questions about the changes in process, platforms used, format, comparison to on-site interviews and overall satisfaction were used for objective and subjective feedback. Results: A 95% participation rate was recorded for the PD survey. 24 out of 55 programs (44%) changed their on-site interviews to virtual format due to the pandemic. Most PDs described their overall impression of virtual interviews as satisfactory (66%, 16/24) and did not have an impact on the applicant's success in the match (35/54; 65%). About 50% of PDs preferred to have on-site interviews with virtual screening in the future. While the participation rate from applicants was much less (26 of 70), responses confirmed our survey results. Majority preferred on-site interviews (17/26), 6 of which preferred virtual screening followed by on-site interviews. Conclusion: Components of virtual screening and interviews were found to have benefits financially and from both time and stress perspectives, and thus might survive past the pandemic.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    P29. Shifting Applicant Attitudes Towards Virtual Plastic Surgery Residency Interviews
    (Wolters Kluwer, 2022-06-02) Bhagat, Neel; Bamba, Ravinder; Gross, Jeffrey; Hassanein, Aladdin H.; Wooden, William A.; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has forced plastic surgery residency programs to transition to virtual interviews for recruitment. In addition to reducing risks of COVID-19 exposure by minimizing travel, virtual interviews are more cost effective and less time consuming for applicants. However, virtual interviews make personal interactions with faculty and residents more challenging for applicants. Assessment of the location and hospital setting is also hindered. This impedes an applicant’s ability to potentially evaluate a program effectively. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the 2021 integrated plastic surgery applicant attitudes towards the current virtual interview process Methods: We surveyed 2021 applicants to our integrated plastic surgery program who interviewed virtually (n=32). Virtual Interview Survey. Applicants were surveyed on how well they became acquainted with our program, faculty, and residents on a scale from 1-5 Results: The survey response was 43.8% (14/32). Most respondents did not have a preference between virtual and in-person interviews (57.1%, n=8). On average, respondents were satisfied with the virtual interview process, rating their overall experience 8.4 (± 1.3) of 10. Applicants responded that they became acquainted with our program, faculty, and residents with respective scores of 3.9 (± 0.62), 3.7 (± 0.73), and 3.6 (± 1.01) on a scale of 1-5. Most applicants did not believe that either a virtual or in-person interview resulted in an advantage to matching (57.1%, n=8). Most applicants responded that virtual interviews allow the opportunity to attend more interviews (78.6%, n=11). Conclusion: We previously published survey data comparing virtual and in-person interviews in the 2020 plastic surgery match during the abrupt transition to virtual interviews during the onset of the pandemic. That study demonstrated lower scores for virtual interviews compared to in-person. However, this survey indicates that applicant attitudes have shifted. Overall, applicants scored the virtual interview process positively in 2021. With the efficiency and financial advantage that virtual interviews offer, it is possible they can become part of the residency selection process even after pandemic restrictions are lifted. Given these findings, residency programs should work on optimizing the virtual interview process.