Medical Student Research Forum Posters

The COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for program directors (PDs) during the 2021 orthopaedic residency application season, requiring many alterations to the traditional application cycle and interview format. Away rotations were restricted, and in-person interviews were discouraged in accordance with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and the American Orthopaedic Association Counsel of Orthopaedic Residency Directors (CORD). Programs mitigated the loss of these in-person encounters by conducting virtual rotations (VRs), informational sessions, and virtual interviews (VIs). Traditionally, applicants to orthopaedic residency programs are ranked primarily by United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 scores, Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) status, third-year clerkship grades, research experiences, and letters of recommendation (LORs). Performance of applicants during in-person orthopaedic rotations has been especially important. PDs have previously indicated that rotating with their program is the most important criterium in ranking applicants. In the past, over half of matched applicants match at their home institution or a program where they have rotated. PDs and applicants clearly value away rotations and in-person interactions to determine whether applicants will be successful in their programs, and there is concern that ability to assess applicant compatibility may be limited in virtual interactions. How VI impact rank list formation for both orthopaedic PDs and applicants is unclear.