Predictors of academic career placement and scholarly impact in fellowship-trained rhinologists

Varun Vohra; Duncan C Watley; Carol H Yan; Tran B Locke; Isaac A Bernstein; Joshua M Levy; Nicholas R Rowan

doi:10.1002/alr.22873

Predictors of academic career placement and scholarly impact in fellowship-trained rhinologists

Int Forum Allergy Rhinol. 2022 Jan;12(1):62-70. doi: 10.1002/alr.22873. Epub 2021 Jul 26.

Authors

Varun Vohra¹, Duncan C Watley¹, Carol H Yan², Tran B Locke³, Isaac A Bernstein¹, Joshua M Levy⁴, Nicholas R Rowan¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
² Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of California San Diego, San Diego, CA.
³ Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX.
⁴ Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA.

PMID: 34309228
DOI: 10.1002/alr.22873

Abstract

Background: As rhinology fellowship positions outpace the availability of academic rhinology jobs, it is increasingly important to identify characteristics that are associated with academic placement after fellowship completion. In this study, we evaluated the association of academic characteristics during training with current job placement and posttraining scholarly impact.

Methods: Previous rhinology fellows were identified using publicly available data. Bibliometric indices, training institutions, graduate degrees, and job placement data were used in bivariate and multivariable regression analyses to assess for association with predictors and academic trajectory.

Results: Data from 265 rhinologists, all graduating between 1991 and 2020, were included. Most surgeons (n = 185, 70%) held an academic position and 80 (30%) surgeons worked in a nonacademic setting; 93.2% had a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree and 80.3% were male. Multivariable logistic regression indicated that a designation of MD, compared with Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO; odds ratio [OR], 5.93; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.97-21.9), number of publications during fellowship (OR, 1.19; 95% CI, 1.02-1.41), and h-index during training (OR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.07-1.49]) were independently predictive of academic job placement. Meanwhile, number of primary authorships during fellowship (β = 1.47; 95% CI, 1.07-1.88]), h-index during training (β = 0.48; 95% CI, 0.25-0.71), and PhD (β = 4.16; 95% CI, 1.57-6.76) were associated with posttraining h-index. Medical school ranking; graduate degrees, including Master of Science (MS), Master of Business Administration (MBA), and Master of Public Health (MPH); and research metrics before residency were not associated with either academic placement or posttraining h-index.

Conclusion: The predictors of academic job placement in rhinology are unclear, but h-index during training, and research productivity during fellowship may serve as indicators of an academic career.

Keywords: bibliometrics; education; fellowships and scholarships; internship and residency; medical; schools; surgeons.

MeSH terms

Bibliometrics
Career Choice
Efficiency
Fellowships and Scholarships
Humans
Internship and Residency*
Male
Surgeons*