March 15, 2019—(BRONX, NY)—Fourth-year medical students of Albert Einstein College of Medicine, a part of Montefiore, learned today where they will start the next phase of medical education as resident physicians at hospitals around the nation.

The Match Day results were delivered in envelopes distributed and opened at noon in the Lubin Dining Hall amid cheers, hugs, and joyful cries as students celebrated with their families and friends.

With tears streaming down his face, Mazz Khan rejoiced with his sister, friends, and family members, who were all wearing white T-shirts adorned with a photo of his face for support. Gripping two cellphones, he video-chatted with his parents, both physicians at work in separate offices, to relay news of his match to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, in pediatrics.

“I’m overwhelmed,” he said, hugging mentors and faculty members. “I would not be here without you,” he added, embracing Christina Chin, director of student affairs. “I mean that so much.”

Mr. Khan said he chose pediatrics because “kids are our future. They literally mean everything and I want to be a part of kids who are growing up and living their best lives.”

Across the room, Shacelles Bonner waved her Match letter and screamed and sobbed with joy after learning she matched to Yale New Haven Hospital for emergency medicine.

“I had a great support network,” she said. “They always had my back, they always supported me. I don’t think I’d be where I am without them. And I had amazing clinical training.”

“It’s a thrill to see our students celebrate the culmination of their hard work and dedication over the years,” said Allison Ludwig, M.D., associate dean for student affairs. “They match to wonderful programs around the country and we’re proud of their accomplishments and excited for their futures. We work toward this all year. They work toward this their whole lives.”

Read Dr. Ludwig's Match Day blog

The top residency match for the class of 2019 was internal medicine, with 41 students going into the field. Rounding out the top ten specialties are: pediatrics (21), emergency medicine (19), surgery (10), obstetrics and gynecology (10), radiology-diagnostic (10), anesthesiology (9), psychiatry (9), orthopaedics (6), and family medicine (6). Of the 174 students who entered the match, 99% matched. More than 20 percent will join an Einstein-affiliated residency program, including those at Montefiore, the University Hospital for Einstein.

The National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) conducts the match using a computerized mathematical algorithm to align the preferences of applicants with the preferences of U.S. residency programs seeking new trainees. According to the NRMP, today’s main residency match is the largest in its history with a record-high 38,376 applicants who submitted program choices for 35,185 positions, the most ever offered in the Match.

Residency training for most graduates will begin about a month after Einstein’s May 23 commencement ceremony.

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