Transforming Diversity of a Family Medicine Residency Program

This perspective article describes efforts to increase diversity in the University of Utah Family Medicine Residency Program (UUEMR) by revising the rubric used to select candidates for interviews. The intervention focused on reducing reliance on standardized test scores and medical school grades while introducing "resiliency points" to account for life challenges faced by applicants underrepresented in medicine (URiM). Between 2017 and 2021, interviews of URiM candidates increased from 3% to 34%, and the proportion of URiM residents in entering classes grew from 0% to 50%. The program’s current residency cohort averages 36% URiM representation. These changes were implemented without explicit consideration of race, aligning with the university’s admissions policies.

This perspective article describes efforts to increase diversity in the University of Utah Family Medicine Residency Program (UUEMR) by revising the rubric used to select candidates for interviews. The intervention focused on reducing reliance on standardized test scores and medical school grades while introducing "resiliency points" to account for life challenges faced by applicants underrepresented in medicine (URiM). Between 2017 and 2021, interviews of URiM candidates increased from 3% to 34%, and the proportion of URiM residents in entering classes grew from 0% to 50%. The program’s current residency cohort averages 36% URiM representation. These changes were implemented without explicit consideration of race, aligning with the university’s admissions policies.