A Comparison Between In-Person and Virtual Fellowship Interviews During the COVID-19 Pandemic

IMPORTANCE: Traditional in-person fellowship interviews require great time and financial commitments. Here, we studied the response of program directors (PDs) and applicants to virtual interviews. Virtual interviews could decrease both financial and time commitments. OBJECTIVE: To determine if most applicants and PDs believed that virtual interviews should be used more widely in the future. DESIGN: After the 2020 cardiothoracic fellowship match, an e-mail survey was sent to 66 program directors and 107 applicants using the Qualtrics platform. SETTING: During the 2020 cardiothoracic fellowship interview cycle, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down travel for in-person interviews. This forced a transition to virtual interviews. PARTICIPANTS: Of 107 applicants emailed, 46 (44%) participated with a completion rate of 87%. sixty-six PDs were contacted and of those, 36 (55%) participated with a 92% survey completion rate. EXPOSURE: All survey participants were participants in the 2020 cardiothoracic match. MAIN OUTCOME(S) AND MEASURE(S): (1) The percent of participants who agree that virtual interviews should be continued in the future and the percent of participants who agree that virtual interviews could be replacements for in person interviews. (2) Were virtual interviews perceived to have a negative impact on one's ultimate match? (3) What is the current cost of an in-person interview in travel and lodging for an applicant? RESULTS: Fourty-six applicants (44% participation rate) and 36 PDs (55% participation rate) participated in the survey. Seventy-nine percent of program directors and 55% of applicants either agreed or strongly agreed that virtual interviews should be offered in the future. However, just 15% of PDs and 20% of applicants either agreed or strongly agreed that virtual interviews should be offered without the option of an in-person interview. Twenty-five percent of PDs and applicants agreed or strongly agreed that virtual interviews negatively impacted their chance of matching one of their top applicants/programs. The median cost of an in-person interview was $600 (interquatile range 500-725). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Most applicants and PDs agree that virtual interviews should be offered in the future. Twenty-five percent of participants reported that they believed virtual interviews negatively impacted their match. Given the overall acceptance of virtual interviews and the cost of in-person interviews, virtual interviews could be useful to incorporate into future interview seasons.