Breast Imaging Fellowship Match: Program Directors' Perspectives in Year Two

Objective: The purpose of this study was to summarize the results of a survey distributed by the Society of Breast Imaging to assess Breast Imaging programs' experience with the second year of the Breast Imaging Fellowship Match process. Methods: In July 2018, the Society of Breast Imaging sent out an anonymous 11-question survey to all Breast Imaging programs in attempts to gauge their experience with the previous Match cycle. The survey included dichotomous questions and Likert-scaled questions. Follow-up to several questions allowed for unstructured free text responses. In this institutional review board-exempt study, responses were then summarized and categorized into appropriate categories. Results: The survey was sent to 88 program coordinators and 90 program directors of the 89 existing programs. In total, 66 responses from program directors were received, representing 74.2% of the existing programs. The majority (68%) of programs reported a positive experience with participation in the Match (at least 4/5 stars). The most commonly cited issues with the Match were interview dates/timeline, programs participating outside of the Match, and need for a universal application. Eighty-four percent of programs stated that they were planning on participating in the Match for the upcoming application cycle, with 11% undecided and 5% stating they were not planning on participating. Conclusions: Despite recognized areas for improvement, the great majority of programs felt that the Match is an improvement over the prior application process and that it significantly improved the experience for the applicants.