Consistently there are a greater number of applicants than positions for Canadian ophthalmology residency programs and therefore CMG applicants should be encouraged to apply to more than one discipline. The trends in the number of residency positions can be used to update supply projections for ophthalmologists and guide human resource planning.
 Consistently there are a greater number of applicants than positions for Canadian ophthalmology residency programs and therefore CMG applicants should be encouraged to apply to more than one discipline. The trends in the number of residency positions can be used to update supply projections for ophthalmologists and guide human resource planning.
  It is unclear how medical students prioritize different factors when selecting a specialty. With rising under and unemployment rates a novel approach to career counselling is becoming increasingly important. A better understanding of specialty selection could lead to improved career satisfaction amongst graduates while also meeting the health care needs of Canadians.
 
  Medical students from the University of Toronto participated in a two-phase study looking at factors impacting specialty selection. Phase I consisted of focus groups, conducted independently for each year, and Phase II was a 21-question electronic survey sent to all students.
 
  Twenty-one students participated in the focus group phase and 95 in the survey phase. Primary themes related to career selection identified in Phase I in order of frequency included personal life factors (36), professional life factors (36), passion/interest (20), changing interests (19) and hidden curriculum (15). The survey phase had similar results with passion (83), lifestyle (79), flexibility (75), employment opportunities (60) and family (50) being ranked as the factors most important in specialty selection.
 
  Personal factors, professional factors and passion/interest may be key themes for medical students when deciding which specialty to pursue. Targeting career counselling around these areas may be important.
 Personal factors, professional factors and passion/interest may be key themes for medical students when deciding which specialty to pursue. Targeting career counselling around these areas may be important.
  In North America, there is limited data to support deliberate application strategies for post-graduate residency training. There is significant interest in determining what factors play a role in Canadian medical graduate (CMG) matching to their first choice discipline and heightened concern about the number of students going unmatched altogether.
 
  We analyzed matching outcomes of CMGs based on seven years (2013-2019) of residency application data (
  = 13,499) from the Canadian Residency Matching Service (CaRMS) database using descriptive and binary logistic regression modeling techniques.
 
  The sample was 54% female, with 60% between the ages of 26 and 29, and 60% attended medical schools in Ontario. Applicants who received more rankings from residency programs were more likely (OR = 1.185, 
  < 0.001) to match. Higher research activities (OR = 0.985, 
  < 0.001) and number of applications submitted (OR = 0.920, 
  < 0.001) were associated with a reduced likelihood of matching. Number of volunteer activities and self-report publications did not significantly affect matching. Being male (OR = 0.799, 
  < 0.05) aged <25 (OR = 0.756, 
  < 0.05), and from Eastern (OR = 0.497, 
  < 0.01), or Western (OR = 0.450, 
  < 0.001) Canadian medical schools were predictors of remaining unmatched.
 
  This study identified several significant associations of demographic and application factors that affected matching outcomes. The results will help to better inform medical student application strategies and highlight possible biases in the selection process.
 This study identified several significant associations of demographic and application factors that affected matching outcomes.  https://www.selleckchem.com/products/gsk-3008348-hydrochloride.html  The results will help to better inform medical student application strategies and highlight possible biases in the selection process.
  The number of unmatched Canadian Medical Graduates (CMGs) has risen dramatically over the last decade. To identify long-term solutions to this problem, an understanding of the factors contributing to these rising unmatched rates is critical.
 
  Using match and electives data from 2009-2019, we employed machine learning algorithms to identify three clusters of disciplines with distinct trends in match and electives behaviours. We assessed the relationships between unmatched rates, competitiveness, rates of parallel planning, and program selection practices at a discipline level.
 
  Across Canada, growth in CMGs has outpaced growth in residency seats, narrowing the seat-to-applicant ratio. Yet not all disciplines have been affected equally a subset of surgical disciplines experienced a consistent decline in residency seats over time. Applicants to these disciplines are also at disproportionate risk of becoming unmatched, and this is associated with lower rates of parallel planning as quantified through clinical electives and match applications. This, in turn, is associated with the program selection practices of these disciplines.
 
  Long-term solutions to the unmatched CMG crisis require more nuance than indiscriminately increasing residency seats and should consider cluster specific match ratios as well as regulations around clinical electives and program selection practices.
 Long-term solutions to the unmatched CMG crisis require more nuance than indiscriminately increasing residency seats and should consider cluster specific match ratios as well as regulations around clinical electives and program selection practices.
  Urban background physicians are the main source of physician supply for rural communities across Canada. The purpose of this study was to describe factors that are perceived to influence rural career choice and practice location of urban background family medicine graduates.
 
  We conducted a qualitative, descriptive study employing telephone interviews with 9 urban background family physicians practicing in rural locations. Those who completed residency training between 2006 and 2011, were in rural practice, and had an urban upbringing were asked when the decision for rural practice was made; factors that influenced rural career choice; and factors that influenced choice of a particular rural location. Emerging themes were identified through content analysis of interview data.
 
  We identified four themes as factors perceived to influence rural career choice - variety/broad scope of rural practice, rural lifestyle, personal relationships, and positive rural experience/physician role models. We also identified factors in four areas perceived to influence the choice of a particular rural practice location - having lived in the rural community, spousal influence, personal lifestyle, and comfort with practice expectations.