Match Day: Online Search Trends Reflect Growing Interest in IR Training

Google Trends was used to characterize the relationship between the interventional radiology (IR) applicant pool and related Internet queries for “IR fellowship” from July 2006 to July 2013. Results were compared with National Residency Match Panel data by regression analysis and one-way analysis of variance. Search traffic for IR fellowship demonstrated a statistically significant linear annual increase (R2 = 0.87; P = .0013). Total IR applicants increased by 184% (R2 = 0.98; P = .0216). Search traffic was predictive of applicants for each match year (R2 = 0.92; P = .0004) and programs filled (R2 = 0.93; P = .0003). Internet queries mirror trainee professional interests, with significant increases in search traffic related to IR fellowship and strong correlation with growth in applicants.