Abstract
The Genetic Counseling Admissions Match was first implemented in the 2018 admissions cycle and requires all applicants and programs to register with the National Matching Services (NMS) system in order to participate. Prior to the use of the NMS matching system, genetic counseling admissions were conducted using a set of guidelines agreed upon by members of the Association of Genetic Counseling Program Directors (AGCPD). The effects of utilizing a Match system in the past two genetic counseling admissions cycles, and the broader implications this may have for future cycles, are not currently understood. This study aims to determine how admissions committee members feel the Match is affecting the admissions process, identify perceived benefits and limitations to using a Match for genetic counseling admissions, and determine if using a Match is affecting the diversity and composition of genetic counseling student cohorts. This study used an online survey instrument, that was distributed to members of AGCPD through their listserv, and AGCPD members were asked to disseminate the survey to all members of their program’s admissions committee. Quantitative data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics and open-ended responses were analyzed for themes. The vast majority of participants reported that they were happy with the outcome of the 2018 Match cycle (95.92%) and 2019 Match cycle (88.0%). Benefits to the Match system identified by participants included a reduction in stress for both programs and applicants, an added ease and quickness to the process, and more fairness. The most common changes participants reported their programs have made to admission practices since implementation of the Match are interviewing more candidates (45.95%) and creating a more quantitative method of evaluating candidates (24.32%). Most participants (80.0%) reported that they have seen no change in the racial/ethnic diversity of their program’s Match cohorts and a large number also reported no perceived change in cohort composition in terms of age, educational background, work experience, or geographic origin either. When asked how the system could improve, one theme that emerged was lowering the financial burden on applicants. The perspectives of participants in this survey provide evidence that, thus far, the genetic counseling Match system is working as intended and admissions committees prefer the Match system.