Making the Match: An Innovative “Speed-Dating” Approach for Pairing Pediatric Residents with a Research Preceptor and Project

This article was migrated. The article was not marked as recommended. Objectives: For residency programs with a mandatory research component, it is challenging to match residents with optimal preceptors and projects early in residency to expedite project completion. An evaluation of a "Speed Dating" format adopted in 2011 to match pediatric residents with research preceptors was performed. Methods: Residents and preceptors who participated in Speed Dating 2011 through 2016 were surveyed for their views on the process. Additionally, research output by residents with access to Speed Dating was measured, Results: Forty of 52 preceptors (77%) and 48 of 54 residents (89%) responded of which 32 preceptors and 46 residents had attended Speed Dating. Of 32 preceptors, 18 (56%) had found "a match" and 16 (50%) considered Speed Dating to be a very good strategy for matching residents with preceptors. Twenty-six of 46 residents (57%) had selected their project, preceptor or both from Speed Dating and 34 of 48 who responded to the survey (71%) preferred Speed Dating vs simply receiving a list of potential preceptors and projects. Twenty-eight residents who trained in the Speed Dating era and have completed their general pediatric training reported 30 presentations at conferences and 25 publications stemming from work completed during residency with only 3 (11%) having no presentations or publications. Conclusions: Residents tended to have a more positive attitude towards Speed Dating than did preceptors but most participants were neutral or enthusiastic about this method of matching residents with preceptors The majority of residents chose a project or preceptor or both at Speed Dating. The rate of research project completion and dissemination was high.