EVMS School of Medicine celebrates 100% residency match
On Friday, March 19, graduating medical students at Eastern Virginia Medical School joined medical students across the nation in celebrating Match Day by learning where in the country they will spend their residencies.
“It’s not the Match Day many people envisioned, but it doesn’t change the many accomplishments leading up to this point,” says Richard V. Homan, MD, President and Provost of EVMS and Dean of the School of Medicine. “The MD Class of 2021 has spent countless hours learning how to care for their future patients, selflessly volunteered to serve the community before and during a pandemic, and stood as shining example of our mission to be the most community-oriented school of medicine and health professions in the United States. We are very proud of the work these students have done under very trying conditions and to see a 100 percent match rate is outstanding.”
Due to public health concerns regarding COVID-19, the traditional Match Day ceremony wasn’t held. The day began with a virtual video message from School of Medicine leaders. Then, students were able to pick up their match envelopes at a drive-thru at Harrison Opera House, with a few faculty members — at an appropriate distance away— cheering them on.
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, more than 38,000 U.S. and international applicants matched to residency training positions at the nation's teaching hospitals this year. A total of 146 students participated in Match Day and are headed to several of the nation’s most prestigious residency programs.
See the 2021 Match List of where EVMS students matched.
“This is an exciting time in the lives of our medical students,” says Ronald Flenner, MD (MD ’89) Vice Dean of Academic Affairs. “We are very proud of the work and dedication our students have put forth to get to this point in their medical school careers.”
The matching process is organized by the National Resident Matching Program, which uses an algorithm to pair medical students and residency programs. Fourth-year medical students across the nation apply to residency positions in their chosen specialty — such as pediatrics or surgery. After hitting the interview trail, the students rank the programs according to those they would prefer to join. The programs, in turn, rank the students they feel will make the best fit. Nearly all applicants learned the results of that ranking process at the same time.
See all of the photos from this morning's event.