scholarly journals Key Word Use in Letters of Recommendation for Ophthalmology Residency Applicants According to Race, Gender, and Achievements

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (01) ◽  
pp. e163-e171
Author(s):  
Sahil Aggarwal ◽  
Seanna Grob ◽  
Dhruba Banerjee ◽  
Preston Putzel ◽  
Jeremiah Tao
Keyword(s):  
Residency Program ◽  
The United States ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Word Use ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Key Word ◽  
Usmle Step 1 ◽  
Usmle Step ◽  
Letters Of Recommendation

Objectives To identify differences in letters of recommendation (LORs) of applicants to a single ophthalmology residency program by gender, race, academic performance, and match outcome. Design This was a retrospective analysis of LORS for 2,523 applicants (7,569 letters) to the University of California, Irvine ophthalmology residency program from 2011 to 2018. Methods Programming scripts were employed to determine the number of times 22 key words from four thematic categories (standout words, ability, grindstone, and compassion) appeared in LORs for each applicant. A chi-square test was performed to assess for possible differences in the presence of each key word by the following characteristics: gender, underrepresented minority (URM) status, Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) membership, the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) Step 1 score, and match outcome. Linear regressions were created to determine the frequency at which words in each thematic category appeared according to the same baseline characteristics. Results In the LORs, females were more likely to be described as “empathetic” (p = 0.002), URMs were more likely to be described as “caring” (p = 0.002), high Step 1 scorers (≥240) were more likely to be described as “outstanding” (p = 0.002), and matched students were more likely to be described as “exceptional” (p = 0.001), “outstanding” (p < 0.001), and “superb” (p = 0.001). Standout words appeared more often in the LORs of AOA members, matched candidates, and high Step 1 scorers (p < 0.001 for all comparisons). “Competent” appeared more commonly in LORs for low Step 1 scorers (p < 0.001) and unmatched applicants (p = 0.001). Conclusion This study identifies differences in LORs by gender, URM status, and achievement including successful ophthalmology residency match. Females and URMs were more likely to be described as “empathetic” and “caring,” respectively; otherwise, we detected no gender or racial disparities in key word use in LORs. Candidates with high USMLE Step 1 scores or AOA membership had a higher frequency of standout words in their LORs. Whether they were truly more qualified in various dimensions or if they benefited from a halo effect bias warrants further investigation. There was a significant difference in the number of standout words in LORs between matched and unmatched applicants, suggesting that key word frequency may be a relevant metric for LOR appraisal.

An Analysis of Unmanned Aircraft Registration Effectiveness

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-66
Author(s):  
Ronald Pentz ◽  
He (Herman) Tang
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Unmanned Aircraft ◽  
Unmanned Aircraft Systems ◽  
Courts Of Appeals ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Difficult Time ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Rapid Pace

This article describes how small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) are growing at a rapid pace. They are inexpensive and widely available for both hobbyist and commercial use. However, with this rapid growth, regulations are having a difficult time keeping pace to safely incorporate them into the United States National Airspace. Recent regulations requiring the registration of all sUAS have been overturned by the United States Courts of Appeals. This research provides a statistical analysis of the effectiveness of the registration regulation in the reduction of unauthorized and careless sUAS operation prior to being overturned by the courts. Statistical analysis including descriptive statistics and chi square hypothesis tests were used to analyze more than 3,000 reported unauthorized and careless events. The findings show a significant difference in events pre-registration and post registration.

A comparison of student performance on discipline-specific versus integrated exams in a medical school course

2013 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 370-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew R. Thompson ◽  
Mark W. Braun ◽  
Valerie D. O'Loughlin
Keyword(s):  
Medical School ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Bloom's Taxonomy ◽  
Integrated Instruction ◽  
Bloom’S Taxonomy ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Usmle Step 1 ◽  
Usmle Step ◽  
Exam Scores ◽  
The Impact

Curricular reform is a widespread trend among medical schools. Assessing the impact that pedagogical changes have on students is a vital step in review process. This study examined how a shift from discipline-focused instruction and assessment to integrated instruction and assessment affected student performance in a second-year medical school pathology course. We investigated this by comparing pathology exam scores between students exposed to traditional discipline-specific instruction and exams (DSE) versus integrated instruction and exams (IE). Exam content was controlled, and individual questions were evaluated using a modified version of Bloom's taxonomy. Additionally, we compared United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) step 1 scores between DSE and IE groups. Our findings indicate that DSE students performed better than IE students on complete pathology exams. However, when exam content was controlled, exam scores were equivalent between groups. We also discovered that the integrated exams were composed of a significantly greater proportion of questions classified on the higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy and that IE students performed better on these questions overall. USMLE step 1 exam scores were similar between groups. The finding of a significant difference in content complexity between discipline-specific and integrated exams adds to recent literature indicating that there are a number of potential biases related to curricular comparison studies that must be considered. Future investigation involving larger sample sizes and multiple disciplines should be performed to explore this matter further.

scholarly journals The Use of COMLEX-USA and USMLE for Residency Applicant Selection

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 358-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeanne M. Sandella ◽  
John R. Gimpel ◽  
Larissa L. Smith ◽  
John R. Boulet
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Strong Association ◽  
The United States ◽  
Medical Licensing ◽  
Usmle Step 1 ◽  
Licensing Examination ◽  
Usmle Step ◽  
Level 1 ◽  
State Medical Boards ◽  
Phi Coefficient

ABSTRACT  The Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX-USA) and the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) are recognized by all state medical licensing boards in the United States, and the Federation of State Medical Boards has supported the validity of both examinations for medical licensure. Many osteopathic medical students take both examinations.Background  The purpose of this study was to investigate performance on COMLEX-USA Level 1 and USMLE Step 1 of students from colleges of osteopathic medicine where the majority of students took both examinations.Objective  Data were collected on the entering classes of 2010 and 2011. Relationships between the COMLEX-USA Level 1 and the USMLE Step 1 were quantified using Pearson correlations. The correlation between outcomes on the 2 examinations was evaluated using the phi coefficient. A contingency table was constructed to look at first-attempt outcomes (pass/fail).Methods  Data for 2010 and 2011 were collected from 3 osteopathic medical schools, with 795 of 914 students (87%) taking both examinations. The correlation between first-attempt COMLEX-USA Level 1 and USMLE Step 1 scores was statistically significant across and within all 3 schools. The overall correlation was r(795) = 0.84 (P &lt; .001). Pass/fail status on the 2 examinations was moderately correlated (ϕ = 0.39, P &lt; .01).Results  Our study found a strong association between COMLEX Level 1 and USMLE Step 1 performance. Additional studies to accurately compare scores on these examinations are warranted.Conclusions

scholarly journals The United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 1 Is Changing—US Medical Curricula Should Too

10.2196/20182 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. e20182
Author(s):  
Benjamin Liu
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Clinical Decision Making ◽  
Clinical Decision ◽  
The United States ◽  
Medical Decision ◽  
Medical Licensing ◽  
Traditional Lectures ◽  
Usmle Step 1 ◽  
Licensing Examination ◽  
Usmle Step

In recent years, US medical students have been increasingly absent from medical school classrooms. They do so to maximize their competitiveness for a good residency program, by achieving high scores on the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1. As a US medical student, I know that most of these class-skipping students are utilizing external learning resources, which are perceived to be more efficient than traditional lectures. Now that the USMLE Step 1 is adopting a pass/fail grading system, it may be tempting to expect students to return to traditional basic science lectures. Unfortunately, my experiences tell me this will not happen. Instead, US medical schools must adapt their curricula. These new curricula should focus on clinical decision making, team-based learning, and new medical decision technologies, while leveraging the validated ability of these external resources to teach the basic sciences. In doing so, faculty will not only increase student engagement but also modernize the curricula to meet new standards on effective medical learning.

scholarly journals Analysis of the 1990–2007 neurosurgery residency match: does applicant gender affect neurosurgery match outcome?

2018 ◽  
Vol 129 (2) ◽  
pp. 282-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan R. Durham ◽  
Katelyn Donaldson ◽  
M. Sean Grady ◽  
Deborah L. Benzil
Keyword(s):  
Medical School ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Application Process ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Successful Match ◽  
Usmle Step 1 ◽  
Usmle Step ◽  
Underrepresentation Of Women ◽  
Residency Application

OBJECTIVEWith nearly half of graduating US medical students being female, it is imperative to understand why females typically make up less than 20% of the neurosurgery applicant pool, a number that has changed very slowly over the past several decades. Organized neurosurgery has strongly indicated the desire to overcome the underrepresentation of women, and it is critical to explore whether females are at a disadvantage during the residency application process, one of the first steps in a neurosurgical career. To date, there are no published studies on specific applicant characteristics, including gender, that are associated with match outcome among neurosurgery resident applicants. The purpose of this study is to determine which characteristics of neurosurgery residency applicants, including gender, are associated with a successful match outcome.METHODSDe-identified neurosurgical resident applicant data obtained from the San Francisco Fellowship and Residency Matching Service for the years 1990–2007 were analyzed. Applicant characteristics including gender, medical school attended, year of application, United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) Step 1 score, Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) status, and match outcome were available for study.RESULTSOf the total 3426 applicants studied, 473 (13.8%) applicants were female and 2953 (86.2%) were male. Two thousand four hundred forty-eight (71.5%) applicants successfully matched. USMLE Step 1 score was the strongest predictor of match outcome with scores > 245 having an OR of 20.84 (95% CI 10.31–42.12) compared with those scoring < 215. The mean USMLE Step 1 score for applicants who successfully matched was 233.2 and was 210.8 for those applicants who did not match (p < 0.001). Medical school rank was also associated with match outcome (p < 0.001). AOA status was not significantly associated with match outcome. Female gender was associated with significantly lower odds of matching in both simple (OR 0.59, 95% CI 0.48–0.72) and multivariate analyses (OR 0.57, 95% CI 0.34–0.94 CI). USMLE Step 1 scores were significantly lower for females compared to males with a mean score of 230.1 for males and 221.5 for females (p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in medical school ranking or AOA status when stratified by applicant gender.CONCLUSIONSThe limited historical applicant data from 1990–2007 suggests that USMLE Step 1 score is the best predictor of match outcome, although applicant gender may also play a role.

scholarly journals Ophthalmology Program Director Perspectives of Scoring Step 1 Pass/Fail

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (02) ◽  
pp. e251-e254
Author(s):  
Saif A. Hamdan ◽  
Alan T. Makhoul ◽  
Brian C. Drolet ◽  
Jennifer L. Lindsey ◽  
Janice C. Law
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Application Process ◽  
Medical Graduates ◽  
Medical Licensing ◽  
Usmle Step 1 ◽  
Licensing Examination ◽  
Usmle Step ◽  
Residency Application ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Scoring for the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 was recently announced to be reported as binary as early as 2022. The general perception among program directors (PDs) in all specialties has largely been negative, but the perspective within ophthalmology remains uncharacterized. Objective This article characterizes ophthalmology residency PDs' perspectives regarding the impact of pass/fail USMLE Step 1 scoring on the residency application process. Methods A validated 19-item anonymous survey was electronically distributed to 111 PDs of Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited ophthalmology training programs. Results Fifty-six PDs (50.5%) completed the survey. The median age of respondents was 48 years and the majority were male (71.4%); the average tenure as PD was 7.1 years. Only 6 (10.7%) PDs reported the change of the USMLE Step 1 to pass/fail was a good idea. Most PDs (92.9%) indicated that this will make it more difficult to objectively compare applicants, and many (69.6%) did not agree that the change would improve medical student well-being. The majority (82.1%) indicated that there will be an increased emphasis on Step 2 Clinical Knowledge (CK) scores, and many (70.4%) felt that medical school reputation will be more important in application decisions. Conclusion Most ophthalmology PDs who responded to the survey do not support binary Step 1 scoring. Many raised concerns regarding shifted overemphasis on Step 2 CK, uncertain impact on student well-being, and potential to disadvantage certain groups of medical students including international medical graduates. These concerns highlight the need for reform in the ophthalmology application process.

scholarly journals The United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 1 Is Changing—US Medical Curricula Should Too (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Liu
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Clinical Decision Making ◽  
Clinical Decision ◽  
The United States ◽  
Medical Decision ◽  
Medical Licensing ◽  
Traditional Lectures ◽  
Usmle Step 1 ◽  
Licensing Examination ◽  
Usmle Step

UNSTRUCTURED In recent years, US medical students have been increasingly absent from medical school classrooms. They do so to maximize their competitiveness for a good residency program, by achieving high scores on the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1. As a US medical student, I know that most of these class-skipping students are utilizing external learning resources, which are perceived to be more efficient than traditional lectures. Now that the USMLE Step 1 is adopting a pass/fail grading system, it may be tempting to expect students to return to traditional basic science lectures. Unfortunately, my experiences tell me this will not happen. Instead, US medical schools must adapt their curricula. These new curricula should focus on clinical decision making, team-based learning, and new medical decision technologies, while leveraging the validated ability of these external resources to teach the basic sciences. In doing so, faculty will not only increase student engagement but also modernize the curricula to meet new standards on effective medical learning.

An Analysis of Unmanned Aircraft Registration Effectiveness

2019 ◽  
pp. 525-539
Author(s):  
Ronald Pentz ◽  
He (Herman) Tang
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Unmanned Aircraft ◽  
Descriptive Statistics ◽  
Courts Of Appeals ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Difficult Time ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Rapid Pace

This article describes how small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) are growing at a rapid pace. They are inexpensive and widely available for both hobbyist and commercial use. However, with this rapid growth, regulations are having a difficult time keeping pace to safely incorporate them into the United States National Airspace. Recent regulations requiring the registration of all sUAS have been overturned by the United States Courts of Appeals. This research provides a statistical analysis of the effectiveness of the registration regulation in the reduction of unauthorized and careless sUAS operation prior to being overturned by the courts. Statistical analysis including descriptive statistics and chi square hypothesis tests were used to analyze more than 3,000 reported unauthorized and careless events. The findings show a significant difference in events pre-registration and post registration.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document