Residency programs and applicants invest significant time and financial resources in the residency recruitment, match, and interview processes. Given the high stakes in scheduling an interview, many applicants are distracted during rounds and educational conferences, concerned that they might lose the opportunity to interview at a desired program. This process of offering interviews can detract from the educational experience of applicants and residents. Program faculty and administrators expend a significant amount of energy on recruitment that could be diverted to current resident training or patient care, so optimizing efficiency of the recruitment process is crucial.
The Alliance strongly urges all programs to extend interview invitations in a manner that preserves and protects the education of applicants and current residents. Applicants should be able to fully participate in educational activities without fear of missing interview invitations.
To this end, the Alliance developed guidelines to help the GME community navigate the complexities of interview scheduling.