Dermatology Residency Applications: Correlation of Applicant Personal Statement Content With Match Result
The personal statement is a narrative written by an applicant to residency programs to discuss his/her interests and express his/her personality, but it is unclear how the personal statement impacts the dermatology residency application process. The aim of this study was to analyze personal statements from applicants to a dermatology program at a major academic institution to identify common themes and determine if certain themes were associated with successful matching. All personal statements submitted to the dermatology residency program at UNC School of Medicine (Chapel Hill, North Carolina) during the 2012 application cycle (N=422) were analyzed to identify 9 common themes of content. Certain themes differed in prevalence between matched and unmatched applicants. Further investigation is needed to elucidate the impact of personal statement themes and other application content on the residency selection process.
Practice Points
- The most common themes discussed in applicant personal statements include personal accomplishments/attributes and positive qualities of dermatology.
- Presentation of dermatologic cases was more prevalent in personal statements of matched applicants.
- Name-dropping was more common among unmatched applicants.
The 422 personal statements examined in our study represent 83.1% of the total pool of applicants to postgraduate year 2 dermatology positions in 2012 (N=508).11 Our data differed somewhat from an analysis of same-year dermatology personal statements of 65% of the national applicant pool.5 Olazagasti et al5 found that themes of a family member in medicine (more in unmatched), a desire to contribute to decreasing literature gap (more in matched), and a desire to better understand dermatologic pathophysiology (more in matched) to be statistically significant (P≤.05 for all). Unfortunately, these themes were found in a small number of applicants, with each being reported in less than 7%.5 Our study included 23% more unmatched candidates and likely better estimated potential significant differences between matched and unmatched applicants.
In the Results section, Olazagasti et al5 reported that matched applicants emphasized the study of cutaneous manifestations of systemic disease significantly more frequently than unmatched applicants. However, the P value in their report did not support this statement (P=.054). In addition, their Conclusion section discussed matched candidates including themes of “why dermatology” and unmatched candidates including a “personal story” as differences between groups. Again, their results did not show any statistical significance to support these recommendations.5 When providing medical student mentorship in a field as competitive as dermatology, faculty must be careful in giving accurate advice that, if at all possible, is supported by objective data rather than personal preference or anecdotes.
,Our study was limited in that only personal statements of applicants to a single program in a specific specialty were analyzed. Applicants may have submitted personalized versions of their personal statements to specific schools, which may have biased the themes present in this subset of personal statements. Given these limitations, we are unable to determine if these results are generalizable to all dermatology residency applicants. Further limitation is that the analysis of personal statements is in itself a subjective process.
This study included a larger number of personal statements representing a larger proportion of the total pool of applicants in 2012 than prior studies examining personal statements of dermatology residency applicants. In addition, this study examined the ultimate dermatology match outcome for each applicant during the 2012 application cycle. Future investigations could explore the role of other factors in the residency selection process such as USMLE Step scores, community service, research experiences, and Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society status.
Conclusion
There are common themes in the personal statements of dermatology residency applicants, including personal accomplishments/attributes and positive qualities of dermatology. In addition, discussion of dermatologic cases was statistically more prevalent in applicants who ultimately matched, whereas name-dropping and religious influences were more prevalent in applicants who did not match. This information may be useful to effectively mentor medical students about the writing process for the personal statement. Further investigation is needed to explore these associations and the role of other aspects of the application in the residency selection process.
