Anesthesiology programs have conducted virtual interviews for residency recruitment since the 2020-2021 recruitment season. While the initial transition to virtual interviews was due to the COVID pandemic, programs and applicants have realized additional benefits, including decreased costs to programs and applicants and decreased time away from important medical school activities.
The recommendations from the Coalition for Physician Accountability (CoPA) include guidance for all programs to conduct virtual interviews. The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) provided guidance in support of virtual interviews during the 2022-2023 recruitment season. The most recent guidance from AAMC includes a continued recommendation in support of virtual interviews. Additionally, the NRMP is considering functionality to allow program directors to lock their rank order lists early, potentially facilitating “no stakes” second look opportunities.
Based on the CoPA, AAMC, and NRMP recommendations, and the belief that equity should be prioritized in recruitment, the AACPD recommends all anesthesiology programs conduct virtual interviews with the possibility of a “no-stakes” in-person visit if the NRMP moves forward with allowing programs to lock their rank lists early. Individual programs are strongly discouraged from conducting both virtual and in-person interviews in the same season, as this has the potential to introduce significant bias.
The AACPD does not have the authority to mandate or enforce these recommendations. We understand that each program has unique needs and may opt not to follow these recommendations, but we believe that a unified approach to recruitment is in the best interest of applicants to our programs. The AACPD Council respects and supports Sponsoring Institutions and program directors in making these difficult decisions.