Gender trends of military general surgery residency applicants

Background: Despite the fact that women comprise half of medical school graduates, women remain under-represented in General Surgery. We aimed to identify the trend in military general surgery applicants based on gender. Methods: A retrospective review of the Medical Operational Data System (MODS) applicants from 2014 to 2019 was performed. Demographic data included age, gender, average board scores, applied and matched specialty. Results: 204 students applied and 167 applicants matched into Army General Surgery programs from 2014 to 2019. The percentage of all students applying to General Surgery was statistically higher in females (13.4% vs 9.0%, p = 0.04), with females matching at a statistically higher rate (77% vs 57%, p = 0.02). Over the last 6 years, 55% of residents in training are men and 45% are women. Conclusion: Army General Surgery programs have increased the amount of women in training over the last six years. We believe that this will ultimately translate to more female surgeons contributing to military medicine.

Automated summary

Despite the large number of female medical students, they are under-represented in the field of general surgery. However, in military general surgery applicants, there has been an increase in the proportion of females applying and matching, which will contribute to military medicine with more female surgeons.