Mp39-20 Impact of Preference Signaling on the Total Financial Burden of Urology Residency Applications on Applicants and Programs

You have accessJournal of UrologyEducation Research II (MP39)1 May 2024MP39-20 IMPACT OF PREFERENCE SIGNALING ON THE TOTAL FINANCIAL BURDEN OF UROLOGY RESIDENCY APPLICATIONS ON APPLICANTS AND PROGRAMS Anessa Sax-Bolder, Amanda Seyer, Bridget Findlay, Elizabeth Bearrick, Candace Granberg, and Kevin Koo Anessa Sax-BolderAnessa Sax-Bolder , Amanda SeyerAmanda Seyer , Bridget FindlayBridget Findlay , Elizabeth BearrickElizabeth Bearrick , Candace GranbergCandace Granberg , and Kevin KooKevin Koo View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1097/01.JU.0001008644.01945.6c.20AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookLinked InTwitterEmail Abstract INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: Rising annual volumes of urology residency applications have resulted in large increases in applicants' expenses and the time cost borne by program faculty. One goal of the large-volume preference signaling (LVPS) initiative in the 2024 Match is to curb excess application volumes. We aimed to assess the financial impact of LVPS by modeling costs incurred by both applicants and program faculty. METHODS: Public applicant data were obtained from the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) and AUA. To model applicants' costs, we calculated ERAS fees and assessed the total applicant pool by year. For program costs, we assumed that every submitted application receives a 10-minute screening review by 1 reviewer, and a subset of applications equal to twice the average number of interviews given by programs receives a 30-minute full review by 2 reviewers. For 2024, we assumed that LVPS would permit programs to halve the screening pool. We calculated faculty cost based on published salary data and extrapolated per-program costs to 143 US programs. All costs were adjusted for inflation. RESULTS: From 2013 to 2023, the average number of applications submitted per applicant increased 66% (53 to 83), while average interviews given by programs and taken by applicants remained static (Figure 1). Following LVPS implementation in 2024, submitted applications declined 25% to 66 per applicant, resulting in applicant costs falling 30% from $2132 to $1491. In the total cost model for 2017-2024, total applicant submission costs peaked at $1.2M in 2022 before falling to $0.8M in 2024 (Table 1). Compared to 2023, LVPS led to a markedly lower average number of applications received per program (332 to 247 applications), leading to a 24% decrease in faculty review time, from 139 to 105 hours. Extrapolated to all US programs, total program costs fell to a record low $1.4M. Thus, total costs of application submission and review decreased from a peak of $3.2M in 2022 to $2.3M in 2024, corresponding to a per-vacancy cost of $5836, the lowest cost observed since 2017. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of large-volume preference signaling resulted in markedly decreased urology residency application volumes and program review time, resulting in substantially lower total financial costs of the submission and review process. Download PPT Source of Funding: None © 2024 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 211Issue 5SMay 2024Page: e660 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2024 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.Metrics Author Information Anessa Sax-Bolder More articles by this author Amanda Seyer More articles by this author Bridget Findlay More articles by this author Elizabeth Bearrick More articles by this author Candace Granberg More articles by this author Kevin Koo More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...