Fourth-year medical students learn their fates on national match day

By Joe Kuttenkuler

When the clock strikes noon on Thursday, March 20, fourth-year students from Virginia Commonwealth University's School of Medicine will gather for the tradition of National Match Day to learn where they will spend the next several years of their lives.   

Along with the 173 VCU School of Medicine students, thousands of other fourth-year students from medical schools across the United States will receive sealed envelopes that contain the name of the residency program to which they have been matched.

The event will take place beginning at 11:30 a.m., at the Women's Club of Richmond, Bolling-Haxall House, 211 E. Franklin St.

The National Resident Matching Program was established in 1952. It matches graduating medical students with hospitals for internships and residencies. Each year approximately 16,000 U.S. medical school seniors and 15,000 graduates of osteopathic, Canadian or foreign medical schools compete for approximately 23,000 residency positions.

In December and January, the students interview at sites around the country. By the end of February, they have ranked their choices in order of preference, and the hospitals have done the same with their top candidates. These submissions are matched by computer in Washington, D.C. The results are delivered to students around the country on the third Thursday of March.