Education Research: Has Video Killed the Interview Star?: A Survey of Current Neurology Residents on In-Person vs Virtual Residency Interviews.

Abstract

Background and objectives: The residency application process relies on interviews, which allow programs and applicants to assess one another. Historically, interviews were conducted in person at each program. With the advent of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, residency interviews shifted to a virtual format. Now, many specialties are choosing to return to in-person interviews. The objective of this study was to evaluate the resident perspective of virtual and in-person interviews.

Methods: We created a survey about various aspects of the residency interview process and distributed it to neurology residents in all years of training from 5 institutions across the United States. Because of the timing of survey distribution, some residents interviewed in-person while others interviewed virtually. We focused the survey on a few themes: number of applications, cost, and overall quality. Survey response data were analyzed using generalized linear models and by nonparametric methods for categorical data.

Results: Of the 164 total residents among the 5 programs, 60 completed the survey; 25 (41.7%) interviewed in-person while 35 (58.3%) interviewed virtually. Applicants who interviewed virtually applied to more programs (38.2 ± 26.6 vs 20.7 ± 7.4, p < 0.001) and attended more interviews (15.4 ± 8.3 vs 11.6 ± 3.3) but received a lower percentage of interview offers (54.3% ± 23.0% vs 74.4% ± 19.8%). Applicants who interviewed in-person spent significantly more money (95% CI $2,000-3,500 vs $15-100) but were also more confident in their assessment of a program's culture (76.9% vs 17.1%) and location (56.0% vs 8.6%). When asked which method they would prefer, respondents chose the method that they were familiar with-96% of people who interviewed in-person would prefer in-person interviews while 68.6% of those who interviewed virtually would prefer virtual interviews (p < 0.001).

Discussion: There are multiple factors to consider when deciding on in-person or virtual residency interviews. In-person interviews are significantly more expensive and thus raise issues of equity but also provide better insight into the culture, location, and "fit" of programs and can help to reduce application burden. All these factors need to be considered before moving forward with a decision on residency interview formats for the future.