Issue Ninety-Eight - March 27, 2006
2006 Match Performance - Number of IMGs Matching Increases
For the fourth consecutive year, the number of first year (PGY-1) residency positions offered through the Match increased. A total of 21,659 first year positions were offered in the 2006 Match, held earlier this month. This represents an increase of 205 positions compared to last year and an increase of 1,057 positions since 2002.
The number of IMGs who matched to first year positions increased by 152, compared to 2005. Of the 8,877 IMGs who participated in the 2006 Match, 4,382* (49.4%) matched. In the 2005 Match, 4,230 (55.3%) IMG participants were matched to first year positions.
There was an increase in the number of matches for both U.S. citizen IMGs and IMGs who are citizens of other countries.
Of the 6,442 IMG participants who were not U.S. citizens, 3,151 (48.9%) obtained first year positions. The number of non-U.S. citizen IMGs who obtained positions in 2006 increased by 64 compared to last year. This is the fifth consecutive year that there has been an increase in the number of non-U.S. citizen IMGs matching to first year positions.
Of the 2,435 U.S. citizen IMG participants, 1,231 (50.6%) were matched to first year positions, an increase of 88 over last year. This is the third consecutive year that there has been an increase in the number of U.S. citizen IMGs matching to first year positions.
There were 51 Fifth Pathway participants in the 2006 Match. Of these 51 participants, 22 (43.1%) were matched to first year positions.
*Note: The total number of IMGs who will fill PGY-1 positions for the 2006-2007 academic year will be higher than this number, since a significant number of IMGs obtain PGY-1 positions outside of the Match.
About the Match
The annual NRMP Match is the system by which applicants are matched with available residency positions in U.S. programs of graduate medical education (GME). Participants submit to the NRMP a list of residency programs, in order of preference. Ranked lists of preferred residency candidates are likewise submitted by U.S. GME programs with available positions. The matching of applicants to available positions is performed by computer algorithm. The Match results announced in March of each year are typically for GME programs beginning the following July.
Additional Resources on the Match and Match Results
The preceding data are taken from the Advanced Data Tables for 2006 Main Residency Match compiled by the NRMP. These tables provide detailed information on the positions offered and filled by the 2006 Match and prior Match years. To access these tables, or to obtain further information on the NRMP, visit www.nrmp.org.
The June issue of Academic Medicine, the journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, usually offers an analysis of Match results from the preceding March. For more information, visit your medical school's library or www.academicmedicine.org.
The September issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association traditionally provides an in-depth analysis of graduate medical education in the United States. This analysis includes the number of IMGs entering and continuing in U.S. GME programs and a breakdown of IMG resident physicians by specialty and subspecialty. Visit your medical school's library or http://jama.ama-assn.org.