Preparing Students for Residency Interviews in the Age of COVID: Lessons Learned from a Standardized Video Interview Preparation Program

Abstract Objectives The COVID 19 pandemic has necessitated the wide scale adoption of video-based interviewing for residency applications Video interviews have previously been used in the residency application process through the pilot program of the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) Standardized Video Interview (SVI) We conducted an SVI preparation program with our students over three years that consisted of an instructional lecture, deliberate practice in video interviewing, and targeted feedback by emergency medicine faculty The aim of this investigation was to summarize the feedback students received on their practice SVIs in order to provide the guidance they need for preparing for the video interviews that will replace in-person interviews with residency programs Methods A retrospective thematic analysis was conducted on faculty feedback provided to students who had completed SVI practice videos in preparation for their application to an EM residency between June 2017 and July 2019 Categorized comments were also sorted by type of faculty feedback: positive reinforcement, constructive criticism, or both Results Forty-six medical students received 334 feedback elements from three faculty Feedback was balanced between positive reinforcement statements and constructive criticism Students performed well on Appearance with an emphasis on communication skills and techniques for improving the quality of their video presentation, including lighting and camera placement