When they began their journey at WMed in 2017, students in the Class of 2021 represented a diverse group of future physicians, selected from the medical school’s largest-ever applicant pool.
On Friday, filled with the nervous apprehension that Match Day often brings, they each learned where they will be headed next as they prepare to leave WMed and begin the transition from medical students to resident physicians.
It was a moment that came about all at once as the clock struck noon on Friday, March 19, and the 73 students from the medical school’s fourth MD class participated in a time-honored tradition. It was a day filled with celebration but also one marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted this year’s event – just as in 2020 – to be held virtually.
On Wednesday, two days before Match Day, the WMed community held a Match Week parade outside the W.E. Upjohn M.D. Campus to honor the students. As each student passed by the Upjohn Campus in their car, they were met with loud cheers and presented with a celebration box filled with supplies to celebrate the big day.
Then, on Friday, many students gathered in small groups that included their loved ones as they learned their Match results from an e-mail instead of the traditional Match Day envelope. They stayed in touch with one another, sending their congratulations during the life-changing moment via text, social media, Facetime, and other tools.
“Today is an important day and one that you and your loved ones have worked very hard to help you reach,” WMed Founding Dean Dr. Hal B. Jenson said. “As we take time to celebrate today, I want to thank everyone – faculty, staff, the entire WMed community, and also your families – for the support that they have given you to reach this important milestone.
“You have accomplished a lot and we are very pleased,” Dr. Jenson added. “You’ve completed medical school in the midst of the Covid pandemic. I am convinced that if you can do that, you can do almost anything and you will have great successes in your residency and beyond.”
For medical students, Match Day represents a pinnacle of their time spent in undergraduate medical education. WMed students joined other students from across the country in learning where they will spend the next three or more years as resident physicians. Residency interviews were conducted virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’ve come so far together and we’ve learned and grown here at WMed, and the sky is the limit for us,” M4 Ryan Khalil said in a video message and champagne toast to his classmates. “So, let’s raise a glass. Here’s to you for being so resilient and awesome, and to your family and friends, and mentors and faculty, and everyone who’s helped you get to this point today.”
Key Highlights from the Match
- 99% of the students in the Class of 2021 matched to a residency slot as part of a nationwide process that is increasingly competitive.
- Four students from the Class of 2021 matched to residency slots at WMed and will complete their training in Kalamazoo in the specialties of General Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery, Pediatrics, and Psychiatry. They will join the 200-plus physicians-in-training in the medical school’s 15 residency and fellowship programs.
- 18 students will remain in Michigan for residency, working in hospitals in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Grand Blanc, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Royal Oak, Saginaw, and Southfield.
- 34 students will complete their training in a specialty that could lead to a career in primary care.
- WMed students will train in residency programs in 15 different states across the US.
The students will complete their training in the following specialties and programs:
Anesthesiology
- Nuvance Health, New York
- University of Chicago Medical Center, Illinois
- University of Miami/Jackson Health System, Florida
Dermatology
- University of Arkansas College of Medicine-Little Rock, Arkansas
Diagnostic Radiology
- Henry Ford Hospital, Michigan
- Loma Linda University, California
Emergency Medicine
- Ascension St. John Hospital, Michigan
- Henry Ford Hospital, Michigan
- Orlando Health, Florida
- University of North Carolina Hospitals, North Carolina
Family Medicine
- McKay-Dee Hospital, Utah
General Surgery
- Ascension Providence/Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Michigan
- Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Michigan
- Florida Atlantic University Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, Florida
- Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education, Minnesota
- University of California San Francisco East Bay, California
- University of Louisville School of Medicine, Kentucky
- University of Minnesota Medical School, Minnesota
- University of Nevada Las Vegas, Nevada
- Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Michigan
Internal Medicine
- Ascension Genesys Hospital, Michigan
- Baylor University Medical Center, Texas
- Beaumont Health-Royal Oak, Michigan
- Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, California
- Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Michigan
- Huntington Memorial Hospital, California
- Inova Fairfax Hospital, Virginia
- Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles, California
- Loyola University Medical Center, Illinois
- Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals, Wisconsin
- University of California Davis Medical Center, California
- University of Illinois College of Medicine, Illinois
- University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa
- University of Michigan Hospital, Michigan
- University of New Mexico School of Medicine, New Mexico
- University of Utah Health, Utah
Medicine-Pediatrics
- Rush University Medical Center, Illinois
- Spectrum Health/Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Michigan
Neurology
- Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center, Arizona
- Cleveland Clinic, Ohio
Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Advocate Health Care, Illinois
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai West, New York
- University of Missouri-Kansas City, Missouri
Orthopaedic Surgery
- University of Vermont Medical Center, Vermont
- Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Michigan
Pathology
- University of California San Diego Medical Center, California
- University of North Carolina Hospitals, North Carolina
Pediatrics
- Baylor College of Medicine, Texas
- Duke University Medical Center, North Carolina
- Emory University School of Medicine, Georgia
- Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals, Wisconsin
- Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Ohio
- Spectrum Health/Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Michigan
- University of Florida Health Shands Hospital, Florida
- University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, Michigan
- Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Michigan
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
- Baylor College of Medicine, Texas
Plastic Surgery
- University of Virginia, Virginia
Psychiatry
- Authority Health Graduate Medical Education, Michigan
- Sunrise Health Graduate Medical Education Consortium, Nevada
- Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine
Urology
- SUNY at Stony Brook, New York
The 2021 Main Residency Match process began in the fall for fourth-year students at WMed and other medical students across the country when they applied to residency programs at which they wanted to train. As part of the process, program directors review applications and conduct candidate interviews in the fall and early winter. From mid-January to late February, applicants submit to the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP) their rank order lists of preferred programs, and program directors rank applicants in order of preference for training. The NRMP uses a computerized mathematical algorithm to match applicants with programs using the preferences expressed on their rank lists.
As they look ahead, students in the Class of 2021 will complete the final months of the fourth-year curriculum at WMed, which will culminate with a virtual graduation ceremony on Saturday, May 15, and they will head to their residency training by July 1.