The AAPS 102nd Annual Meeting

The Impact of Dedicated Research Years on the Integrated Plastic Surgery Match

Kitae E. Park, MD 1; Ledibabari M. Ngaage, MA(Cantab), MB, BChir 1; Scott D. Lifchez, MD 1

1 Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

Introduction

•Integrated plastic surgery is one of the most competitive residency specialties to match in.

•With the change of board exam and school grading to pass/fail and removal of Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) chapters, research productivity remains an increasingly important quantifiable measure of applicant competitiveness.

•More medical students are taking dedicated research years to strengthen their application and improve their chance of matching.

•While there is a significant financial cost associated with dedicated research years including living costs and delayed attending salary, the actual benefits are unknown.

•Previous studies examining the benefit of research years are based on survey data, which may be inaccurate due to sampling bias.

•We examined the effects of a research year on an applicant’s ability to match using application data from the 2022-2023 National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) match cycle.

Objectives

1.Evaluate the effect of a dedicated research year on an applicant’s probability of matching in an integrated plastic surgery program.

2.Perform subgroup analyses to evaluate the benefit of a research year for medical students with no home program.

3.Evaluate the effect of a dedicated research year on an applicant’s probability of matching in a highly funded research institution.

Materials and Methods

•Review of applications to the Johns Hopkins integrated plastic surgery residency program during 2022-2023 NRMP match cycle.

•Exclusion of IMG, FMG, and repeat applicants.

•Collection of application variables including: type of degree (i.e. MD vs DO), USMLE step 2 scores, AOA membership, research productivity (number of articles / abstracts, number of oral and poster presentations), presence of a home program, experience participating in a research year, size of research funding awarded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to the medical institution affiliated with the medical school and residency program, additional degrees, match result.

•Descriptive statistics to compare baseline application characteristics between applicants who participated in a research year and those who did not.

•Multiple logistic regression analysis to identify predictors of matching in a plastic surgery residency and a NIH top 40 funded medical institution.

•Subgroup analysis to identify predictors of matching in plastic surgery for applicants without home programs.

Results

•A total of 254 applications were reviewed.

•81 (31.9%) participated in a dedicated research year.

•Students who participated in research years had significantly more articles, abstracts, and presentations compared to those who did not.

•On multiple regression analysis, AOA membership and step 2 score were predictors for matching in plastic surgery.

•A larger number of articles and abstracts, a higher USMLE Step 2 score, and attending a NIH top 40 funded medical school were significant predictors for matching in a NIH top 40 funded medical institution for residency.

Conclusion

•In our study sample, a research year did not have a significant impact on an applicant’s ability to match in plastic surgery, regardless of whether they had a home program.

•High research productivity was predictive of matching in a highly funded research institution. For applicants who are interested in such a program but lacking research experience, a dedicated research year may help achieve said goal.

The AAPS 102nd Annual Meeting

The Impact Of Dedicated Research Years On The Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency Match

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