Abstract
Purpose This article investigates the characteristics that trainees look for in a pediatric
ophthalmology fellowship program.
Methods A 14-question anonymous survey was created and sent out via the United States Postal
Service to all physicians of American Association of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus.
The survey addressed demographics, the interview process, and the qualities of fellowship
training programs that were important factors in ranking fellowship training programs.
A Likert scale was used to rate different qualities (1: not important, 9: very important)
and summary statistics were reported as overall means and standard deviations.
Results In total, 1,061 were mailed out with 413 returned amounting to a 38.9% response rate.
The qualities with the highest mean were diversity of surgical procedures, volume
of procedures/surgeries, reputation of the fellowship director, advice from mentor,
emphasis on type of surgery performed, program association with an academic institution,
and national reputation of program. The characteristics that ranked the lowest were
presence of a Veteran's Administration hospital and presence of a county hospital.
Females rated proximity to family significantly higher than males. Among responders
who ranked volume of procedures/surgeries as very important, strabismus surgery was
the most important.
Conclusion Pediatric ophthalmologists chose fellowship training programs based on the diversity
and surgical volume of procedures and the reputation of the program director.
Keywords
pediatric ophthalmology - fellowship - survey - program
