School Admissions Research Articles

Criminal history inquiries and minority threat in the legal profession: An analysis of law school and state bar admission applications

While all but one U.S. law school and every state bar ask about criminal history on their admissions application, such inquiries vary considerably in the depth of information sought. One potential explanation for variations in the depth of criminal history inquiries among law schools and state bars relates to minority threat dynamics. Drawing on data quantifying the depth of criminal history inquiries for 190 ABA-approved law schools and all state bars, as well as school and state demographics, this study explores the issue for the first time. Negative binomial regressions reveal that law schools and state bars located in states with larger Black and Latino populations employ more probing criminal history inquiries. We also find that this relationship is parabolic – where the minority threat effect is negative in states with a critical mass of Black/Latino residents. Finally, minority threat effects for law school criminal history inquiries are moderated by state bar criminal history inquiries, suggesting that law schools are cued by state bar policies. These results provide some support for minority threat theory, informing debates about the continued use of criminal history inquiries to screen prospective law students and lawyers, and the inclusiveness of the legal profession generally. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Revision of an Academic English Writing Rubric for a Graduate School Admission Test

Revision of an Academic English Writing Rubric for a Graduate School Admission Test

Incentives in matching markets: Counting and comparing manipulating agents

Manipulability is a threat to the successful design of centralized matching markets. However, in many applications some manipulation is inevitable and the designer wants to compare manipulable mechanisms to select the best among them. We count the number of agents with an incentive to manipulate and rank mechanisms by their level of manipulability. This ranking sheds a new light on practical design decisions such as the design of the entry‐level medical labor market in the United States, and school admissions systems in New York, Chicago, Denver, and many cities in Ghana and the United Kingdom.

Student-Led Mentoring System Designed to Lower Barriers for Graduate School Applicants

Ocean and Earth science graduate school admissions processes can be bewildering. Unwritten expectations and small professional circles, compounded by oceanography’s history of colonialism, sexism, and racism, advantage those privileged enough to navigate as insiders. Thus, even more holistic graduate admissions processes may be inequitable. Here, we share (1) a model for effective peer-to-peer support, Applicant Support & Knowledgebase (ASK), and (2) insights into challenges faced by under-supported applicants. We aim to generate a discussion about the bias in and inaccessibility of the US-based ocean science graduate school entry process and how peer-to-peer programs like ASK can contribute to a tapestry of solutions that address these inequities.

Predicting the Likelihood of Graduate School Admission for Jamboree Students Based on Predictor Variables Using Multiple Regression Analysis

Predicting the Likelihood of Graduate School Admission for Jamboree Students Based on Predictor Variables Using Multiple Regression Analysis

Experiences of Rural and Metropolitan Background Applicants in Preparing for and Completing a Regionally Focused Multiple Mini-interview for Admission into a Regional Medical Program.

To better target rural background and rurally interested applicants during medical school admission, it is increasingly common for rural medical programs to include multiple mini-interview (MMI) scenarios designed to screen for rural interest. It remains unclear whether the inclusion of regionally/rurally focused MMI scenarios positively impacts the selection of rural background applicants and evidence is limited regarding why rural background applicants may perform worse on the MMI. Therefore, this study explored how rural and metropolitan applicants prepare for and perceive the MMI for admission to a regional medical pathway. A mixed-methods survey was sent to provisional entry regional pathway medical school applicants who had completed an MMI. The survey was distributed before any offers of admission had been released. Rural applicants spent less time and money preparing for the MMI and felt less prepared (P < 0.05). However, time and money spent, and resources used to prepare were not associated with feeling more prepared (all P > 0.05). Respondents mostly felt that the MMI process aligned with their expectations (83%), is fair (64%), and helps a rural program select the most suitable applicants (61%). Rural applicants generally felt that they had an advantage over other applicants (61%) while most metropolitan applicants did not (23%; P = 0.002). Applicants to a regional medical pathway are generally supportive of the MMI process. It appears valuable for applicants to prepare for the MMI by understanding the format and requirements; however, investing substantial time and money does not underpin feeling better prepared. MMI scenarios which include a regional focus are perceived to advantage rural applicants.

A Model for Online Delivery of Multiple Mini Interviews.

Multiple mini interviews (MMIs) have become the mainstay of medical school admission interviews in the United Kingdom. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Government imposed restrictions on the meeting of people indoors precipitated a move towards conducting interviews online. Thus, the development of methodologies to conduct robust MMI style interviews remotely was required. In this article, a validated method for conducting remote MMIs is described. This method of delivery produced comparable candidate scores compared with pre-pandemic in-person interviews and maintained reliability.

Words matter: Tracing the implicit meaning of diversity language (and its absence) in medical school mission statements

Despite recent attention to social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion within medical education, little is currently known about whether and to what extent that attention has translated into the language of formal documents articulating organization purpose: medical school mission statements. Mission statements are the marquee declaration of a medical school's identity and purpose, and a recommended tool for applicants to determine “fit” when applying. This study examines whether and to what extent social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion have made it into the formal public statements of organizational purpose and identity over the last several years.Mission statements were extracted manually from the 2007, 2017, and 2021 AAMCs Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) database for both U.S. and Canadian M.D. granting medical schools. Then each mission statement version was coded for the presence and degree of diversity language including words like social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion using an agreed-upon lexicon. Frequencies and within school changes over time were analyzed.Among 139 medical schools with discoverable mission statements from 2007, 91% (n=127) changed their MSs between 2007 and 2021. In 2007, 24% (n=33) of MSs contained diversity language. By 2017 nearly half of MSs; 47% (n=65) contained any reference to such language. But by 2021, despite 46 school having changed their MSs again, only a few more included diversity language in their MSs (56%; n=77). The most common terms used were “diversity,” followed by the increasing presence of words like “inclusion,” “equity,” and “justice” by 2021. Curiously, a few schools redacted diversity language from 2007 to 2021. A Diversity Thesaurus of 22 terms was iteratively identified, with all terms searched in all MSs.Overall, mission statement change was quite common with most medical schools making changes across the 14 years covered in this study. And despite a doubling of the number of medical schools MSs mentioning diversity over a 10-year period, that increase seemed to slow in recent years even among schools who had a chance to change their MS. As of mid-2021, two in five US medical schools still have no mention of diversity related language in their most formal, said articulation of organizational purpose.

A preliminary study of the probitive value of personality assessment in medical school admissions within the United States

BackgroundAllopathic medicine faces a daunting challenge of selecting the best applicants because of the very high applicant / matriculant ratio. The quality of graduates ultimately reflects the quality of medical practice. Alarming recent trends in physician burnout, misconduct and suicide raise questions of whether we are selecting the right candidates. The United States (US) lags far behind the United Kingdom (UK) and Europe in the study of non-cognitive tests in medical school admissions. Although more recently, medical schools in both the UK, Europe and the US have begun to use situational judgement tests such as the Computer-Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics (CASPer) and the situational judgement test (SJT), recently developed by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and that these tests are, in a sense non-cognitive in nature, direct personality tests per se have not been utilized. We have historically used, in the admissions process within the US, knowledge, reasoning and exam performance, all of which are largely influenced by intelligence and also improved with practice. Personality, though also undoubtedly influenced by intelligence, is fundamentally different and subject to different kinds of measurements.MethodsA popular personality measurement used over the past two decades within the US in business and industry, but not medical school has been the Neo Personality Inventory – Revised (NEO-PI-R) Test. This test has not been utilized regularly in allopathic medicine probably because of the paucity of exploratory retrospective and validating prospective studies. The hypothesis which we tested was whether NEO-PI-R traits exhibited consistency between two institutions and whether their measurements showed probative value in predicting academic performance.ResultsOur retrospective findings indicated both interinstitutional consistencies and both positive and negative predictive values for certain traits whose correlative strengths exceeded traditional premed metrics: medical college admission test (MCAT) scores, grade point average (GPA), etc. for early academic performance.ConclusionsOur exploratory studies should catalyze larger and more detailed confirmatory studies designed to validate the importance of personality traits not only in predicting early medical school performance but also later performance in one’s overall medical career.

Can Different Admissions to Medical School Predict Performance of Non-Technical Skill Performance in Simulated Clinical Settings?

Non-technical skills (NTS) in medical care are essential to ensure patient safety. Focussing on applicants' NTS during medical school admission could be a promising approach to ensure that future physicians master NTS at a high level. Next to pre-university educational attainment, many selection tests have been developed worldwide to facilitate and standardise the selection process of medical students. The predictive validity of these tests regarding NTS performance in clinical settings has not been investigated (yet). Therefore, we explored the predictive validities and prognosis of the Hamburg MMI (HAM-Int), HAM-Nat, PEA, and waiting as well as other quota (as example) designated by the Federal Armed Forces) for NTS performance in clinical emergency medicine training of medical students. During 2017 and 2020, N = 729 second, third, and fourth year students were enrolled within the study. The mean age of participants was 26.68 years (SD 3.96) and 49% were female students. NTS of these students were assessed during simulation scenarios of emergency training with a validated rating tool. Students admitted via waiting quota and designated by the Armed Forces performed significantly better than students admitted by excellent PEA (p = 0.026). Non-EU students performed significantly inferior (p = 0.003). Our findings provide further insight to explain how and if admission to medical school could predict NTS performance of further physicians.

Comparison of the Multiple Mini-Interview and the Traditional Interview in Medical School Admissions: Lessons Learned Using a Hybrid Model at One Institution.

Medical school admissions interviews are a critical form of assessment; however, the most effective interview strategy is debated. This study compares the traditional interview (TI) and multiple mini-interview (MMI) within a hybrid TI-MMI model at one medical school to determine whether the interview approaches reveal different information about applicants and whether a hybrid model results in a more diversified applicant pool. Admissions data from 3 application cycles at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell were used. The TI was used in 2017-2018 and the hybrid TI-MMI model in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020. Applicants were scored on a 5-point scale and referred to a voting committee for acceptance consideration if interview scores met threshold criteria. Changes in the number of students referred to the committee using the TI vs the TI-MMI score criteria were analyzed. In 2017-2018 (TI only), 683 applicants were interviewed; in 2018-2019 (TI-MMI), 844 applicants were interviewed; and in 2019-2020 (TI-MMI), 805 applicants were interviewed. Medium correlations were found between total MMI and TI scores in 2018-2019 ( ρ = 0.37, P < .001) and 2019-2020 ( ρ = 0.33, P < .001). No differences were found in TI scores between 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 ( P = .30), but TI scores were significantly lower in 2019-2020 vs 2017-2018 ( P < .001) and 2018-2019 ( P = .002). Overall, a 10% to 18% increase was found in the number of applicants referred to the voting committee when using hybrid criteria, with a 19% to 27% increase in underrepresented in medicine applicants. The TI-MMI model may allow for a more holistic interview approach and an expanded pool of applicants, particularly underrepresented in medicine applicants, considered for acceptance.

The ABA votes to eliminate LSAT requirement

There has been an interesting development in law school admissions that could have an impact on admissions and standardized testing at all levels.

Using the LSAT as a labor market thermometer for lawyers

AbstractWe rely upon a 50‐state, 20‐year panel to find that the number of Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) takers is only loosely related to economic conditions—although slightly more for men than for women, who in 2020 accounted for 58% of all LSAT takers. The number of test takers rose more than 35% between 2014 and 2020. This wave accentuated an already existing downtrend in the median real income of lawyers, and thus provides support for the hypothesis that most states have more lawyers than they need.

Defending Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Undergraduate and Medical School Admission Policies

This Viewpoint argues that reversing or restricting the use of race and ethnicity in academic admission policies could also threaten the diversity of medical schools, both directly by restricting race consciousness in medical school admission practices and indirectly by reducing the overall number of minoritized undergraduate students attending US colleges and universities who could apply to medical school.

Implementasi PPDB Zonasi dalam Perspektif Teori Perubahan Kurt Lewin

New Student Admission Process (PPDB) Zonasi is an important stage for students and school institutions, and becomes an activity that must be carried out in schools, because this activity is the first step in a flow within the school. However, a situation and problems occurred in the Zoning New Student Admission (PPDB) in schools related to the Kurt Lewin Change Model, so that from the problem the researcher intended to conduct research on the implementation of Zoning PPDB according to the perspective of Kurt Lewin's Theory of Change which was seen through 3 stages of change, namely unfreeze, moving and r efreeze. This type of research uses a qualitative approach where this research was carried out in the district of Timor Tengah Selatan in 2022, the data was obtained from the principal, teachers and administrative staff at SMA Negeri 1 Soe, the data was collected through interview, observation and documentation techniques, the data was then analyzed descriptively, The results were then analyzed in a descriptive way to explain the problem of the topic under study. The results of the study show (1) the situation of PPDB Zoning in SMA Negeri 1 Soe (2) PPDB Zoning problems in schools (3) The stage of change according to Kurt Lewin with 3 stages, namely unfreeze , refreezing , c hange that occur during PPDB implementation Zoning (4) The solution will be PPDB Zoning. and (5) Limitations of the Theory of Change according to Kurt Lewin.

A Machine Learning Approach to Identify the Feature Importance for Admission in the National Military High Schools

Abstract The article provides the impact of different averages (feature importance) within the admission exam for the national military high schools using and testing three supervised machine learning algorithms: logistic regression, K-Nearest Neighbors, and random forest. For this purpose, I have used the list with the results of candidates compounded by 430 rows, an unclassified document posted on the national military high school website, with details about: the final admission grade, the general grade for graduating of the secondary school, the general grade obtained at the national assessment, the mark obtained at admission test from Romanian language and mathematics items, etc. From the machine learning perspective, I have built a Jupyter notebook, a Python code using the specialized ML libraries (numpy, pandas, matplotlib, sklearn). In conclusion, the logistic regression algorithm identified the ‘feature importance’ (how each variable contributes to the predicted model) for admission in the national military high school: the mark obtained at admission test from Romanian language and Mathematics items - 4.821834, the general average obtained at the national assessment - 0.584434, the general average for graduating of the secondary school - 0.285446, etc. These are the expected results based on the admission methodology for the national military high schools.

Helping Applicants Write Their Way into a Surgical Residency.

So, you've got students clamoring for help writing their personal statements for Surgery Residency applications? Writing a personal statement for an application to a residency program is often one of the most daunting aspects of the application process. In fact, it is probably the most daunting part of that process. However, there is a surprising paucity of information about how best to approach writing these residency application essays, in stark contrast to the plentiful advice available for other types of applications, such as those required for college or medical school admission.

"Time-In": A Tool for Interrupting Bias in Medical School Admissions Committee Meetings.

During high-stakes committee meetings, bias is often expressed but goes uninterrupted because there is no formal structure to interrupt it. Bias impacts decision-making and can further disadvantage those from backgrounds that have been marginalized. The MD and MD-PhD admissions committees at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in NY in the 2020-2021 admissions season introduced a "Time-In" tool to interrupt bias during committee meetings. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of implementing the "Time-In" tool on committee members' perception of bias as a problem and the likelihood of committee members recognizing, reporting, discussing, and educating others about bias after implementation. There were 117 responses to the pre- and post-season surveys. In aggregate, respondents reported a statistically significant reduction in the perception of bias in the admissions process from pre-season to post-season. There was no change in the likelihood of committee members in aggregate endorsing comfort in recognizing, reporting, discussing, and educating about bias; however, notable gaps existed in the comfort of groups discussing bias publicly, i.e., respondents who are from backgrounds underrepresented in science and medicine, students, and new committee members were less comfortable than their comparators. By the post-season survey, these gaps were closed. Implementing a "time-in" allows for interruption of bias, with an impact of reducing the perception of bias, empowering individuals, and reducing gaps among groups to discuss bias publicly. A "time-in" can profoundly impact decision-making bodies that are critical gatekeepers to the composition of the physician workforce. Future directions will focus on enhancing committee members' skills in educating others about bias.

How does cultural capital influence the school choice of rural and urban migrant families in Nanjing, China? Evidence from a survey study

Across China, the household registration (hukou) policy has restricted the school admission of rural–urban migrant children in urban areas. In 2017, the Nanjing government issued the Tenants Have the Same Right as Householders (THSRH) policy to allow tenants in urban areas access to public-school resources. However, what the migrant children have experienced in and after negotiating access to these schools deserves serious attention from educators, scholars and policymakers. This study surveyed 186 rural–urban migrant parents in Nanjing who chose to send their children to junior secondary schools after the implementation of the THSRH policy. The study identified that higher socioeconomic and household status of rural–urban migrants increased their choices for junior secondary schools. However, the study demonstrated that the restriction in the hukou policy is still a dominant factor influencing public-school access. The study highlighted that the interaction of the development of extracurricular abilities and investment in private supplementary tutoring are two main factors that influence the school choices of rural–urban migrant families.

A longitudinal cohort study observed increasing perfectionism and declining resilience, ambiguity tolerance and calling during medical school which is not explained by student personality

BackgroundThe medical degree is a long and challenging program, not just academically, but regarding the expectations engrained in the culture of medical education. The recent proliferation of literature on the poor mental well-being among students suggests a dilemma that often lays the onus on students to improve their health. The link between personality and vulnerability to psychological distress is acknowledged. This longitudinal study looked at personality in 1st-year and changes in levels of certain psychological traits, as proxy indicators of well-being, in 4th-year. We aimed to determine to what extent changes in psychological traits over time may be attributed to personality.MethodsMedical students completed surveys at the start (1st-year: baseline) and finish (4th-year: follow-up) of their medical degree (N = 154). Temperament and character personality, Perfectionism-Concern over mistakes (CoM), Ambiguity Tolerance, Resilience, Calling to medicine, and demographic variables were measured. Paired t-tests compared changes in psychological traits from baseline to follow-up. Linear regression examined whether personality at baseline would predict levels of psychological traits at follow-up.ResultsThe temperament and character profile of the sample was as expected, and congruent with previous studies, which describe a mature personality. Over four years, levels of Perfectionism-CoM significantly increased, while Resilience, Ambiguity Tolerance and Calling to medicine decreased. Harm Avoidance, Persistence, Self-Directedness and Cooperativeness at baseline significantly predicted levels of these traits at follow-up, but effect sizes were weak. Correlations were in the expected direction and weak.ConclusionsMost commencing medical students, including this cohort, have mature personalities with an industrious temperament and an adaptable character. Yet over four years of medicine, Ambiguity Tolerance, Resilience and Calling declined while Perfectionism-CoM, already elevated at baseline, continued to increase to the final year. Of concern is the increased perfectionism that is strongly associated with poor mental health and psychological distress. The findings suggest a closer look at the entirety of the education environment and how its culture, including secondary school and the medical school admissions processes may influence these trends in students. As medical educators we should question why the pathway to medicine places such unhealthy pressure on students who aspire to be doctors.