Update from Leadership
Dear Colleagues,
We are thrilled to announce that the 2026 AAMC Electronic Residency Application Service® (ERAS®) July fellowship cycle has opened successfully! Each year, over 14,000 applicants apply to fellowship programs through the AAMC ERAS program. We saw 11,000 applicants submit applications during the opening, and fellowship programs across 62 medical specialties are now reviewing applications. For the first time, July fellowship applicants can use program signals to indicate their interest in participating programs.
As a reminder, through the AAMC-Thalamus collaboration, Cortex is now complimentary for all ERAS residency and fellowship programs to streamline holistic application review. The ERAS and Thalamus teams hosted a six-part virtual learning series to help program teams prepare to use this important product. Access the recordings for all sessions (as well as other informational webinar recordings) on our website.
Our team is now preparing for the 2026 ERAS September residency cycle opening — which is right around the corner. I hope you’ll spend some time on our website to learn more about what’s new for the 2026 application season and help your students prepare by sharing the 2026 MyERAS® Applicant User Guide, residency applicant worksheet, specialty spotlight recordings, and more.
Thank you for your continued collaboration and contributions to improving the transition to residency and supporting the next generation of physicians. As always, if you have ideas or suggestions for how we can improve our processes and capabilities, please contact me.
Patrick Fritz
AAMC Senior Director for Residency and Fellowship Services
Staying Aligned: ERAS Terms and Conditions Reminder
As we kick off a new ERAS season, we wanted to share a reminder that program data should be used solely for internal selection and recruitment purposes, per the ERAS Terms and Conditions statement.
Use of ERAS data outside of these intended purposes is not supported under our current policy.
Please take a moment to review the Terms and Conditions in the Program Director’s WorkStation (PDWS) application and learn more by reviewing our data policy to ensure continued alignment. And as always, feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
Program Directors Association Guides for Residency Applicants
The Program Directors Association Guide for Residency Applicants is a joint effort between the Organization of Program Directors Association (OPDA), the AAMC, and the American Medical Association to improve communication and provide program directors guidance on key specialty-specific application information and resources. Each guide includes information on letters of recommendation, away rotations, program signals, USMLE/COMLEX-USA scores, interview format, and more. View the completed 2025-2026 guides.
Have you Joined the ERAS Residency and Fellowship Recruitment Community?
The Residency and Fellowship Recruitment Community has replaced the PDWS Community Site and has relocated to the AAMC Virtual Communities Network. This new community offers an easy-to-use discussion forum where ERAS users can connect, engage, and share best practices. Through this community, you have access to webinar recordings, tutorials, job aids, and user guides that cover everything from a basic overview of the PDWS to pre-season prep, filters, and more. Additional resources will be shared here throughout the season as new functionality becomes available in the PDWS. The AAMC Virtual Communities offers a network of 85 communities, connecting you to nearly 10,000 colleagues across the medical education landscape.
Log in or create your new account on the AAMC Virtual Communities Network to access the Residency and Fellowship Recruitment Community. After your new account is approved, look for the Residency and Fellowship Recruitment Community in the list of "My Communities" at the top of the page in order to join. We look forward to seeing you there!
Recordings Available: 2025 ERAS Specialty Spotlight Webinar Series
Although our specialty spotlight webinar series has concluded, you and your students can still access the 12 dynamic session recordings (each highlighting a different medical specialty) for valuable insights. Each webinar featured a program director and an advisor who shared best practices in preparation for the 2026 ERAS application season. Visit our website to access the entire Specialty Spotlight series and register for upcoming transition to residency webinars.
What We’re Hearing About the ERAS Program
This is my first year using ERAS [and] it has been very easy to use. Super easy to transfer the information to Thalamus.
—Vicki Edwards, Program Coordinator, University of Mississippi
Updated Cortex: Get the Most Out of the New Look! (Recorded Webinar)
Access a new recorded webinar to explore the latest enhancements to the Thalamus Cortex platform. Whether you’re a seasoned user or brand new to Cortex, this session offers a deep dive into the redesigned user interface, smarter screening tools, and powerful new features to simplify your graduate medical education (GME) application process, including the new Cortex Sandbox.
What You’ll Learn:
- How to navigate the new Cortex user interface with ease.
- Key updates that boost usability and productivity.
- Tools to streamline daily tasks and save time.
- Best practices for a more efficient holistic review process.
Resources:
- This recording, as well as additional training, is available for free on the Thalamus University Online Academy.
- ERAS programs are encouraged to bookmark the Cortex webpage for the latest updates.
Watch the recorded webinar now.
Exciting News for the Collaboration: Thalamus Just Announced it Acquired Medicratic!
Medicratic is a health care technology company specializing in using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve the evaluation of medical residency and fellowship applications. Started by physicians-in-training, Medicratic shares in Thalamus's mission to ensure the right doctor ends up at the right hospital to treat the right patients.
The founding team will be joining Thalamus to ensure continuity and accelerate development and growth initiatives including AI-powered visualization of physician and health system alignment, reviewer consistency tools, natural language processing of personal statements and recommendation letters, workforce intelligence dashboards for institutions, and predictive analytics for specialty trends and recruitment optimization.
Learn more:
Please reach out to the Thalamus Team at customercare@thalamusgme.com with questions, comments or ways to get involved in shaping the next generation of GME technology.
New Program Signaling Research: 2023-2024 General Surgery Match Cycles
A study by the AAMC, National Resident Matching Program®, and the National Board of Medical Examiners assessed the 2023-2024 general surgery cycles to determine if program signaling increases the likelihood of ranking and matching in general surgery. Read more.
New in the Residency Explorer™ Tool: 2025 Enhancements and Upcoming Additions
The AAMC has released a series of updates to the Residency Explorer™ tool to support more informed, data-driven decision making during the residency application process. These include program-level interview invitation data from the most recent cycle, newly added license exam score data, expanded Main Residency Match® data, and increased specialty and program coverage.
The Residency Explorer tool remains a valuable resource for students, advisors, faculty, and specialty mentors. These enhancements reflect ongoing feedback from the advising community and aim to increase transparency around program characteristics and selection trends.
Coming Next Month: Additional program-level updates will include the application and Match services used, interview format, eligibility criteria, updated license exam requirements, letter of recommendation requirements, and away rotation expectations.
Explore the tool or share it with others.
Careers in Medicine® Program Provides Early Access to Career Planning Tools
The AAMC has introduced updates to the Careers in Medicine® (CiM) platform to better support students in navigating their career planning journey. All incoming medical students with a current acceptance via the American Medical College Application Service® can now access CiM’s full suite of tools, including newly updated specialty profiles that offer clearer, more actionable insights into a wide range of medical specialties.
In addition to refreshed specialty content, CiM offers personalized self-assessments, goal-oriented specialty list building, and comprehensive career planning timelines and tools. Recently added resources, such as the updated OPDA guides, further enhance CiM’s value for students and advisors alike.
Explore the platform and updated resources.
VSLO® Platform Modernization: What to Expect
We are on track to launch the modernized Visiting Student Learning Opportunities™ (VSLO®) system this winter. This month, we will begin asking interested VSLO users to sign up to join small group sessions to review and offer feedback on selected Home and Host features. These demonstrations are scheduled for mid-September. The new system training schedule will be posted in late October. In addition to live and recorded training sessions, we will provide updated job aids and have office hours available to ensure you and your teams can familiarize yourself with the new platform ahead of the next away rotation season. To accommodate the transition to the new software, and to maintain data integrity, the current VSLO system will be unavailable from Nov. 1-30. We have several steps planned to assist VSLO users with this closure. Visit the VSLO Updates webpage for the latest information.
New AAMC Data Snapshot Examines AI in Medical Education
A new AAMC data snapshot shows tremendous growth in the integration of AI in undergraduate medical education in the United States and Canada, though gaps in adoption are also apparent. Data from the Curriculum SCOPE Survey administered by the AAMC and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine show a 59% increase in the number of schools reporting AI in the curriculum from 2023 to 2024, but opportunities persist for medical schools to improve the AI infrastructure, including ensuring learners, faculty, and staff have secure access to AI tools. This data snapshot is part of the AAMC’s strategy to provide timely, high-quality resources to guide thinking and practice around integrating AI across medical education. Read more.
AAMC Endorses Senate Bill to Expand Federal Investment in Physician Training
The AAMC applauded Senators John Boozman (R-Ark.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for introducing the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025. This bipartisan legislation would help grow the physician workforce and improve access to care for patients nationwide. The bipartisan, bicameral bill would gradually increase the number of Medicare-supported residency positions by 14,000 over seven years, making key investments in physician training in rural and urban communities across the country. Read more.
Events and Resources
ERAS Refresh: Geographic Preference Listening Session for Programs: Session 1
Monday, Aug. 11, 2 p.m. ET
ERAS Refresh: Geographic Preference Listening Session for Advisors & Students
Tuesday, Aug. 12, 7 p.m. ET
ERAS Refresh: Geographic Preference Listening Session for Programs: Session 2
Thursday, Aug. 14, 4 p.m. ET
PDWS Overview Part 1 For New Users
Recording
PDWS Overview Part 2 for Experienced Users
Recording
PDWS Q&A Webinar for Program Users
Recording