As both aspiring and current medical students can attest to, the residency track record of any school is a vital component when determining what school to attend. After all, your residency placement is what dictates the type of doctor you’ll become, but you already know that. As one of the all-time most popular posts on my blog, I thought I’d post a completely refreshed set of residency placement statistics, this time for 2011. AUC administrative staff puts out a very nice PDF compilation of Match statistics, and so I thought it’d be nice to share these well thought-out tables and summaries. I remember that not too long ago, I too was extremely interested in how certain international medical schools fared in the Match. After all, open information is good information.
–End of 2011 AUC Residency Placement Statistics post–
Wow, I had no idea that 13% don’t match…that would seriously suck after spending $160k.
Hi Gary,
I agree, the number appears high. It is undoubtedly something that should be addressed. However, you’ve got to look at the reason why those people did not Match. Some might be attributable to the school, but I’d argue that a large bulk can be filed under non-school related. No, I’m not trying to “pump up the image” of the school; I’ve seen some published statistics that point to reasons including low/failed Step 1 and/or Step 2 CK score. Last year, AUC’s average Step 1 score was ~222, with 30% scoring a two-digit score of 99. In any event, low Step scores are frequently cited for not Matching, especially if one is “dead-set” on a particular field. You’ve also got to realize there are many personal reasons why someone might not Match one cycle, but then Match in the following cycle. These are just a few that come to mind.
-Spencer
What typically happens to those who don’t match? I realize that some may match the following cycle, but there has to be cases were some wind up with a low GPA/Step, and are not dead-set on a particular field, who don’t match. What happens to them?
Carlos,
Thank you for reading and your question! To be 100% honest, I’m not quite sure what happens. Other than those who manage successful placement post-Match Day, those who don’t Match often complete alternative programs (e.g. internships, I believe) until the NEXT round of Matching begins (the following year). These people may re-apply with the mindset that “only Surgery Categoricals” will do, others may diversify their applications. It’s really individual-dependent on what happens after a failed Match. What I have been told is to really put all effort (and take the time) to prep. for Step 1, do as well as possible the FIRST time you take it, because as most already know, all previous attempts are visible on any/all applications.
Hope this helps!
Spencer