Break time: Examining pharmacy residency application deadlines and the potential impact of a proposed timeline shift

Abstract

IntroductionMany pharmacy residency programs set their application deadlines around the first of the calendar year, only weeks following the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) meeting in mid-December. This contributes to a condensed timeframe for applicants and reference writers to complete and submit materials over the winter holidays. This study examined pharmacy residency program application deadlines and respective timing of application and reference letter submissions. MethodsThis retrospective, observational study evaluated all residency programs within the ASHP residency directory. Several scenarios were examined for impact of a universal earliest deadline (UED) designation spanning early January. Subsequent analysis included compilation of application and reference submission dates from a sample of ASHP-accredited residency programs to determine timing of submission in regard to application deadline. ResultsA total of 2449 programs representing 4927 positions were identified for the 2018–2019 application cycle. The mean deadline was 5 January (± three days), and 11% of programs had a deadline prior to 1 January. Among the five first-year residency programs that provided application and reference submission data spanning the 2016–2020 application cycles, the average time from submission to application deadline was four days for applicants and 11 days for references. ConclusionsMost pharmacy residency programs have deadlines in early January. Implementation of a UED would cause a major shift for these programs but is only one component of change for the application process.