Otolaryngology residency home matches during the COVID-19 pandemic

To characterize home matching both at the specialty-level and at the program-level in the 2021–2022 match cycle. Secondary aims include exploring the impact of program size, Doximity ranking, and location on the frequency of home matching.

Review of Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS)-participating United States otolaryngology residency websites and social media for match outcomes between 2017 and 2022. Specialty-level home matching was evaluated by comparing the mean percentages of otolaryngology program spots matched to home applicants across the years using a Kruskal–Wallis test. Program-level home matching was evaluated by comparing the odds of programs matching at least one home applicant across the years using logistic regression analysis.

At the specialty-level, there was an increase in the proportion of overall home matches in 2021 (28.9%) and 2022 (25.5%) compared to 2017–2020 (20.7%), p = 0.005 and p = 0.0495, respectively. A multivariable model adjusting for confounders including program size, region, rurality, and Doximity reputation rank additionally found increased odds of a residency program matching at least one home applicant in 2021 compared to the 2017–2020 application cycles prior to the onset of virtual interviews: OR 2.0, 95% confidence interval = 1.3–3.2, p = 0.002. There was a marginally significant difference in the odds of home matching at the program-level in the 2022 match compared to 2017–2020: OR 1.5, 95% confidence interval = 1.0–2.4, p = 0.06.

Virtual interviews in both 2021 and 2022 match cycles were associated with an increased proportion of home matches at the specialty-level across all available otolaryngology residency positions. However, re-introducing away rotators in the 2022 cycle may have contributed to certain programs favoring home applicants less than the prior year.

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