Evaluations of surgery resident performance correlate with success in board examinations.

Background. American Board of Surgery (ABS) In-Training Examination (ABSITE) scores correlate with future examination scores, but faculty evaluations of resident skill have not been shown to predict future performance. Methods. Objective and subjective evaluations during the past 75 years in our columnar university surgical residency were reviewed to assess their ability to predict success on the qualifying (written) and oral (certifying) examinations offered by the ABS. Results. The ABSITE scores correlated with success on the qualifying examination (multiple R 2 =0.473). Subjective assessments of resident knowledge at any level did not correlate with ABSITE or qualifying scores, but above average scores did predict success on the certifying examination (χ 2 , p<0.005)