IADR Abstract Archives
Influence of Gender on OMS Applicants’ Recommendation Letters
Objectives: Gender bias has been recognized in the candidate selection within medical residency programs. Letters of recommendation have a critical role in the applications for residency programs. This study examined the presence of gender bias in recommendation letters for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery residency candidates.
Methods: The investigators implemented a cross-sectional study and analyzed letters of recommendation entered in the American Dental Education Association Postdoctoral Application Support Service (PASS) for 2021 to 2022 applicants to the University of Washington School of Dentistry Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Qualitative text analysis, quantitative text mining, and topic modeling were performed with software including Dedoose, QDA Miner, and RStudio.
Results: There were 288 letters of recommendation for 54 applicants selected for interview (79.6% male) analyzed. Of 288 letter writers, 71% were male, 31% chairs, 20% deans, and 8% professors. The average word count was 394. Letter writers for female compared with male applicants had a higher average word count (female = 431, Male= 384, p= 0.715). Letter writers were more likely to use a gender term in letters for male applicants. Standout adjectives were often applied to male applicants. General positive terms, grindstone words, doubt raisers, and work ethic were often applied to female applicants.
Conclusions: Letters of recommendation for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery residency generally advocate for the applicant. Male and female applicants are described similarly. Future studies involving more academic institutions are recommended to validate the absence of gender influence on the letters of recommendation in the specialty of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.
Methods: The investigators implemented a cross-sectional study and analyzed letters of recommendation entered in the American Dental Education Association Postdoctoral Application Support Service (PASS) for 2021 to 2022 applicants to the University of Washington School of Dentistry Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Qualitative text analysis, quantitative text mining, and topic modeling were performed with software including Dedoose, QDA Miner, and RStudio.
Results: There were 288 letters of recommendation for 54 applicants selected for interview (79.6% male) analyzed. Of 288 letter writers, 71% were male, 31% chairs, 20% deans, and 8% professors. The average word count was 394. Letter writers for female compared with male applicants had a higher average word count (female = 431, Male= 384, p= 0.715). Letter writers were more likely to use a gender term in letters for male applicants. Standout adjectives were often applied to male applicants. General positive terms, grindstone words, doubt raisers, and work ethic were often applied to female applicants.
Conclusions: Letters of recommendation for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery residency generally advocate for the applicant. Male and female applicants are described similarly. Future studies involving more academic institutions are recommended to validate the absence of gender influence on the letters of recommendation in the specialty of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.