Physician Residency Match Day 2021 – The Largest In History
2021 Match Day Is Pivotal Day In Resident Matching Program
Friday, March 19 isn’t just any ordinary day. For medical school students and graduates throughout the United States, it is the day that their fate will be determined.
The National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) will celebrate the 2021 Main Residency Match, which is where program applicants learn which U.S. residency program will be their training ground for the next three to seven years.
The coronavirus pandemic that has ravaged our country in the last year may be responsible for an increase in medical school residents going forward, as many people feel called to careers in the healthcare field. But for now, Match Day 2021 is the largest in history, with over 42,000 applicants and more positions than ever before. ;
“The NRMP is honored to provide a fair, efficient, and reliable Match for thousands of medical students and graduates as they look forward to entering their specialty training,” says NRMP President and CEO Donna L. Lamb, DHSc, MBA, BSN said in a statement. “COVID-19 presented many challenges to the medical education community including remote learning, disrupted clinical rotations, and virtual interviews and we are in awe of the grit and determination medical students and graduates have shown over this past year. Congratulations to all of this year’s Match participants.”
Match Day is the finale of Match Week, which was March 15-19, and it’s an occasion that all future physicians will remember for the rest of their lives.
Physician Residency Is A Key Career Step
Match Day has a monumental effect on a resident’s career as it determines his or her direction and focuses for the next several years.
The Association of American Medical Colleges 2020 Report on Residentsbreaks down the demographic and racial makeup of the nation's doctors in training and provides key insight into data, trends, and characteristics of medical school graduates and residents. The number of active residents covered in the report increased from 134,951 in 2019 to 139,848 in 2020.
According to the report, “When it’s time to move out of their residencies, many of America’s early-career doctors go where they’re needed most: One-quarter of those who completed residencies in the past decade practice in medically underserved areas (MUAs) across the country.”;
The matching process helps residents determine the direction of their career by placing them in a program that best meets their wants, needs, qualifications, and skillsets.
Celebrate 2021 Match Day Together Online
This year, residents, friends, educators, healthcare professionals, and family members can join in on the fun of Match Day and all celebrate online. The NRMP, American Medical Association (AMA), Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) American Osteopathic Association (AOA), and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) are partnering to host virtual events, and everyone can follow along on the following platforms: TwitterTagboard, and YouTube
Need To Work During Residency? Medical Moonlighting Could Be An Option
Speaking of helping patient populations in need, physician residents also have the ability to assist outside of their residency by means of medical moonlighting.
Medical moonlighting, which can involve part-time locum tenens assignments, provides a host of benefits, including the ability to pay off medical school debt, earn a secondary income, and scout out potential places for future employment. The opportunities are plentiful for experienced physicians, with some potential for residents, as well—just with a few more caveats and restrictions.
Staff Care, an AMN Healthcare company, specializes in locum tenens placements for physicians and advanced practitioners, including locums, works for medical residents on a limited basis. Residents interested in this type of work should connect with a Staff Care recruiter and your residency program to determine if they are eligible for moonlighting opportunities. Some residency programs do not allow them, while others will allow residents in good academic standing to take on these types of positions.
Related:
Medical Moonlighting for Residents: The Pros and Cons
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