Exploring Trends in Immediate Postresidency Career Paths: A Multi-year Analysis of Plastic Surgery Resident Graduates Across the United States

Abstract

Background Plastic Surgery is one of the most diverse specialties in medicine. Due to the competitiveness of plastic surgery residency, applicants are entering the field with increased experience and more developed interests in specific specialties. Programs and prospective applicants may find it beneficial to know trends in career paths of recent graduates. Objectives To identify trends in post-residency career paths for plastic surgery graduates. Methods Data from all integrated plastic surgery residency programs were analyzed from 2013-2022. Eighty-eight residency programs were analyzed for review. Residency websites were the primary source of data. Post-residency career paths were categorized into sub-specialty fellowships, academic practice, or private practice. Secondary data included program rank, size of program, associated fellowship program, associated independent program, and program location. Results Seventy-three programs met inclusion criteria. Private practice was the most common immediate post-graduation path. Microvascular and aesthetic fellowships demonstrated the most growth in the last ten years, followed by hand fellowship. Programs ranked top 25 by Doximity reputation were significantly associated with graduates going into craniofacial (P = .05) and microvascular fellowship (P = .021), and immediate academic practice (P = .011). Lower ranked programs were correlated with higher levels of graduates entering directly into private/community hospital practice (ρ = .327). Conclusions Life after residency is a necessary consideration for training physicians. Understanding trends in programs post-residency career paths could help programs and prospective applicants make more informed decisions on what programs may offer the best opportunities to pursue their desired career path.