Background. The goals of this project were to evaluate the current perspective on letters of recommendation and to assess the need\nfor, and acceptance of, a more standardized letter of recommendation (LOR). Methods. An eight-question survey was distributed\nto plastic surgery program directors. A five-point Likert scale was selected as a means of quantifying the participantsâ�� responses\nto the survey. Results. Twenty-eight of 71 program directors (39.4%) completed the survey. The majority of participants felt that\ncurrent LOR did not offer a realistic way to compare applicants (mean �± SD, 2.9 �± 0.8). While most agreed that increasing the\nobjectivity of LOR would be valuable in comparing applicants (mean �± SD, 4.1 �± 0.9), the overall average response to whether\na more standardized letter format would improve the resident selection process remained only slightly better than neutral\n(mean �± SD, 3.5 �± 1.2). Most of the chairmen supported the notion that familiarity with the author of the LOR strengthened\nthe recommendation (mean �± SD, 4.5 �± 0.6). Conclusion. The majority of plastic surgery program directors would like more\nobjectivity in comparing applicants but are ambivalent about a standardized letter of recommendation.
Loading....