Match Day: A Celebration of Past, Present, and Future

By Melissa Piasecki, M.D.,

To see the 2022 Match Day results and learn the residency programs and specialties of the Class of 2022, visit med.unr.edu/events/match

For one moment each year, on the third of Friday in March, hundreds of fourth-year medical students collectively hold their breaths across the United States. The clock strikes 9 a.m, they tear open their match results, and the celebration begins.

Match Day, a rite of passage for medical students, sets into motion the next stage of their careers in medicine. While this momentous day celebrates the start of a new chapter for each student, it also recognizes the intense and rigorous journey toward becoming a physician they began four years ago—with many milestones along the way.

After receiving their first white coats to commemorate the beginning of their medical education, these students entered the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine’s classrooms and labs. There, they learned the art, science, and skills of practicing medicine. During their third year, students immersed themselves in pediatrics, internal medicine, psychiatry, family medicine, surgery, and OB/GYN clerkships while discovering the specialties they wished to pursue.

By their fourth year, students began applying to residency programs. After participating in virtual interviews with potential programs, students ranked each according to their preferences. Meanwhile, the programs also listed their top student candidates and available spots with the National Resident Matching Program (NRWP). Then, the NRWP used a mathematical algorithm to place applicants into residency positions.

Our students perform exceptionally well in the Match in all specialties and across the country. Residency programs know them for their exceptional skills, high levels of competency and knowledge, and outstanding leadership qualities. The Match is the finish line for medical school and a significant accomplishment on their path to becoming a practicing physician. Match results reflect the students’ hard work and commitment to medicine and the tremendous dedication of the faculty and staff who work every day to support student success. I am grateful to UNR Med faculty and staff and our community partners for their commitment to our students.

The vision of UNR Med is A Healthy Nevada, and training and retaining Nevada’s healthcare professionals, including physicians, is key to bringing it to life. Nevada continues to face persistent, widespread shortages of health care workers, which limits access to health care around the state, as reflected in the Office of Statewide Initiatives’ annual Health Workforce in Nevada report. In specialties such as family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, surgery, and more, the state falls short of the number of physicians needed to meet our community’s needs. The most effective strategy to grow our workforce is to expand our residency training programs’ size and add new specialties for training newly graduated medical students. Expanding graduate medical education (residency programs) is one of the golden opportunities within UNR Med’s affiliation with Renown Health.

To those students who choose a residency program in Nevada—thank you. You will help address physician shortages and build A Healthy Nevada. I hope those who train elsewhere will take what they learned in Nevada with them to other states and then bring home even more knowledge and expertise when they are ready to start practicing.

Wherever they match for their residency, UNR Med students will demonstrate the quality of our education and will open doors for future graduates. Each student reflects our school’s commitment to educating the best physicians possible and helping all Nevadans and their communities live longer, healthier lives. We are proud of each and every one of them.

The University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine (UNR Med), Nevada’s first medical school, is a community-based, research-intensive medical school with a statewide vision for a healthy Nevada. Established in 1969, UNR Med is improving the health and well-being of all Nevadans and their communities through excellence in student education, postgraduate training and clinical care, research with local, national and global impact, and a culture of diversity and inclusion. For more information, visit med.unr.edu.

Media Contact: Scott Walquist, Director of Communications, Office of Marketing and Communications University of Nevada, Reno, 775-287-6788, [email protected]