The structured interview as a tool for predicting premature withdrawal from medical school

Abstract

A 1:l matched case-control study was carried out to assess whether comments written about a candidate during a semi-structured interview can identify students likely to withdraw from a medical course better than global numerical scores. Fifty-nine students who withdrew from the undergraduate medical course at the University of Newcastle prior to completion were matched for sex, year and mode of entry into the course, prior academic qualifications and age at entry, with 59 students who had not discontinued or been excluded from the course.No significant differences were found between the numerical scores allocated for personal attributes to students who later withdrew from the course and those who continued. However, students who withdrew had statistically significantly more negative comments made about them at interview with respect to their supportive and encouraging behaviour 0, = 0.04) and their motivation to become doctors (p = 0.05). Although no other comparisons reached statistical significance, students who withdrew consistently received more negative comments and fewer positive comments than their continuing peers. A stepwise logistic regression procedure identified the number of negative comments made by interviewers about a candidate on their supportive and encouraging behaviour as the only statistically significant predictor of later withdrawal (odds ratio 1.65 95% confidence interval 1.01-2.70). (Aust NZ J Med 1992; 22: 692-698.) Key words: Medical school, personal qualities withdrawal, structured interview, predictive power. METHODS Source of DataDetails of the selection process :o the Bachelor of Medicine course at the University of Newcastle can be found elsewhere. ' -3 Briefly, applicants who have the

Predicting the “strugglers”: a case-control study of students at Nottingham University Medical School

“…Powis et al found that interviewers' negative remarks had some predictive value for course withdrawal in a study using 1:1 partial case-control matching, but the association was relatively weak 12. Papadakis et al suggested some correlation between negative statements made during the undergraduate years regarding professional conduct and later disciplinary action in graduates 13.…”

Uncertainties in the selection of applicants for medical school

“…Some authors have reported that high scores on admission interviews predicted achievement of honors (Powis et al 1992), the Dean's letters of recommendation on graduation (Ferguson et al 2002), OSCE scores (Peskun et al 2007), ranking for admission for Family Medicine residency (Peskun et al 2007), performance on tests of diagnostic reasoning (Groves et al 2003) and communication skills (Kulatunga-Moruzi and Norman 2002b), while low scores predicted withdrawal rates from medical schools (Powis et al 1992) (Table 2). However, the extent to which these outcomes reflect noncognitive traits, cognitive aptitude, or both is uncertain.…”

Medical School Application Interview Score Has Limited Predictive Validity for Performance on a Fourth Year Clinical Practice Examination

“…The medical school admission interview is important to selection committees (Edwards et al, 1990;Johnson and Edwards, 1991;Patrick et al, 2001;Van Susterin et al, 1999), but studies have varied greatly on whether the admission interview correlates with later measures of performance. The studies that support the use of the interview in the selection process have utilized a gamut of outcome criteria to reach that conclusion Elam and Johnson, 1992;Eva et al, 2004;Gough and Hall, 1975;Meredith et al, 1982;Powis et al, 1988Powis et al, , 1992. Older studies generally found that the admission interview did correlate with clerkship grades and whether or not the students would later complete medical school (Gough and Hall, 1975;Meredith et al, 1982;Powis et al, 1988Powis et al, , 1992.…”

“…The studies that support the use of the interview in the selection process have utilized a gamut of outcome criteria to reach that conclusion Elam and Johnson, 1992;Eva et al, 2004;Gough and Hall, 1975;Meredith et al, 1982;Powis et al, 1988Powis et al, , 1992. Older studies generally found that the admission interview did correlate with clerkship grades and whether or not the students would later complete medical school (Gough and Hall, 1975;Meredith et al, 1982;Powis et al, 1988Powis et al, , 1992. Carol Elam and coauthors, utilizing outcomes that were perhaps more specific to the skills assessed in an applicant interview, found that the admission interview did predict later performance during a videotaped patient interview.…”