The Residency Interview Season: Time for Commonsense Reform

Residency applicants and residency programs invest significant resources in attempting to match applicants into the best possible programs. However, recent trends have made the process increasingly inefficient. Decisions made by all parties—students, medical schools, and residency programs—have contributed to a system that has become increasingly anxiety-provoking for the students and unnecessarily cumbersome for the programs. Relatively straightforward solutions exist, however, that would improve the process for all parties involved. With improved mentoring of medical students, honest and timely assessment of applicants by programs, and, most importantly, standardizing the interview invitation timeline, candidates and programs would encounter an improved residency interview experience.