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Contact: Media Relations Officer, (202) 828-0975.
NRMP's Match Day 1999 Will Employ the Web
For The First TimeMatch Week Runs From March 15-18
Washington, D.C., March 10, 1999 -- For the first time, participants in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) will learn, via the World Wide Web, if they have successfully matched to a residency training position. This year's Match Day, when medical students find out which residency program they will enter, will be held on Thursday, March 18. While the NRMP has gone to an electronic format, most U.S. medical schools will continue with their traditional Match Day ceremonies.
"The NRMP's decision to move to an electronic system is designed to assure everyone receives the information at the same time, allowing for the matching process to be as fair as possible to all participants," said NRMP Executive Director Robert Beran, Ph.D.
NRMP match week activities will begin on Monday, March 15, when matched and unmatched information will be released only to applicants via the web. Individuals that match will learn they have filled a position, but will not be informed of the specific residency program. For participants that do not match to a residency position, they will have two days to locate and secure unfilled positions. In past years, initially unmatched participants have had only 24 hours to locate available positions. On Thursday, March 18, participants successfully matched to a residency training position will learn which residency program they will enter. The information will be disseminated to match participants via the web as well as medical school ceremonies.
"Providing unmatched participants with 48 hours to make final decisions is intended to increase the likelihood that applicant decisions can be more considered and less expedient. Furthermore, it is hoped that doubling the amount of time for finding a position will decrease applicant feelings of urgency and anxiety," said Dr. Beran.
Also this year, the NRMP employed a new web-based rank order system for the matching process. Through the web, applicants and residency programs entered and confirmed their Rank Order Lists (ROLs). ROLs, also known as preferred order lists, allow students to prioritize their favorite programs, and residency programs to rank their preferred applicants.
In 1998, the NRMP offered 20,299 first-year residency positions through the match. A total of 26,360 applicants participated in the match with 18,197 receiving a first-year residency position.
The NRMP will release selected match data to the public on Thursday, March 18, at 1:00.
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The National Resident Matching Program was established in 1952 to provide an orderly and fair mechanism to match the preferences of applicants for U.S. residency positions with residency program choices of applicants. The program provides a common time for the announcement of the appointments, as well as an agreement for programs and applicants to honor the commitment to offer and accept an appointment if a match results.
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