BACKGROUND: The continuity of undergraduate to postgraduate training suggests that performance in medical school should predict performance later in residency. PURPOSE: The goal is to determine whether undergraduate performance is predictive of postgraduate performance. METHODS: Residency program directors assessed the performance of medical school graduates (Classes 2004-2006) at the end of the 1st postgraduate year. Measures of undergraduate performance were retrieved including grade point averages, clerkship in-training evaluation reports, and the total score on the Medical Council of Canada Part 1 exam. RESULTS: Complete data were available for 242 (81.5%) graduates. Postgraduate performance consisted of two reliable factors (clinical acumen and human sensitivity) that explained 78% of the variance. Correlations between undergraduate and the two postgraduate measures were low (.03-.31). CONCLUSIONS: Measures of undergraduate performance appear to be poor predictors of performance in residency that consisted of two primary dimensions (clinical acumen and human sensitivity).
BACKGROUND: The continuity of undergraduate to postgraduate training suggests that performance in medical school should predict performance later in residency. PURPOSE: The goal is to determine whether undergraduate performance is predictive of postgraduate performance. METHODS: Residency program directors assessed the performance of medical school graduates (Classes 2004-2006) at the end of the 1st postgraduate year. Measures of undergraduate performance were retrieved including grade point averages, clerkship in-training evaluation reports, and the total score on the Medical Council of Canada Part 1 exam. RESULTS: Complete data were available for 242 (81.5%) graduates. Postgraduate performance consisted of two reliable factors (clinical acumen and human sensitivity) that explained 78% of the variance. Correlations between undergraduate and the two postgraduate measures were low (.03-.31). CONCLUSIONS: Measures of undergraduate performance appear to be poor predictors of performance in residency that consisted of two primary dimensions (clinical acumen and human sensitivity).