Whether to improve their odds of matching or to pursue genuine interest in more than one physician specialty, more residency applicants are casting a wider net with their specialty options. In the 2026 residency-selection cycle, 42% of applicants applied to more than one specialty, according to the latest figures from the Association of American Medical Colleges’ (AAMC) Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS).
For medical students and international medical graduates (IMGs) preparing their application strategies for the upcoming Match season, understanding the trends and implications of multispecialty applications can provide valuable context. For those considering applying to multiple specialties, here’s a deeper dive into the current landscape.
How common are cross-applicants?
In the AAMC’s ERAS system, residency applicants who apply to more than one specialty are called “cross-applicants.” The AAMC ERAS data examining cross-applicants reveals that at 42% across all applicant types, a larger portion of aspiring residents applied to more than one specialty in 2026 than they had since at least 2022. The percentage of applicants applying to more than one specialty was 2.4 percentage points higher than it was in 2025.
Historically, and in 2026, applicants from DO-granting medical schools are the least likely to apply to residency programs in more than one specialty. In 2026, 3.8% of DO applicants did so. DOs made up roughly 18% of the cross-applicant pool in 2026. Nearly 10% of applicants from MD-granting medical schools applied to multiple specialties in 2026. They made up 33.6% of the pool of cross-applicants. In 2026, 19.2% of IMGs applied to more than one specialty.
How does cross-applying affect application totals?
Across all residency applicant types, cross-applicants submitted more applications on average than the overall applicant pool. Among residency applicants from MD-granting medical schools, those applying to multiple specialties submitted an average of 79.2 residency applications, compared with 53.7 for all MD applicants.
The pattern was similar for residency applicants from DO-granting medical schools. Cross-applicants submitted an average of 96.8 applications, compared with 68.2 for all DO applicants. Among IMGs, those applying to more than one specialty applied to an average of 130.5 programs, compared with 114.3 for all IMG applicants.
The extra work involved with applying to more than one specialty extends beyond submitting more applications. It also may require separate personal statements, different letters of recommendation and additional interview preparation for each physician specialty.
How many specialties do cross-applicants apply to?
In 2026, there were 21,201 applicants who applied to multiple specialties. Here’s a breakdown of how many specialties they applied to.
- Applied to two physician specialties (also called “dual applicants”)—10,342.
- Three specialties—7,156.
- Four specialties—2,288.
- Five or more—1,415.
DOs and IMGs who applied to multiple physician specialties tended to do so with more specialty concentration, most commonly applying to two specialties. MD cross-applicants most commonly applied to three specialties.
Which physician specialties have the most dual applicants?
Examining behaviors for all combined applicant types, the most common specialties in which applicants cross-applied were:
- Internal medicine—33% of all applicants were cross-applicants.
- Family medicine—17.6%.
- PGY-1 only transitional year programs—15.8%.
- General surgery—6.7%.
- Pediatrics—6.3%.
Across all residency applicant types, internal medicine was the most common specialty for cross-applicants, typically paired with another field. Transitional year programs also ranked among the five most common cross-application specialties for each applicant group.
Among MD applicants, the top five also included anesthesiology, surgery and diagnostic radiology. For DO applicants, the list also included family medicine, anesthesiology and surgery. Among IMGs, it also included family medicine, pediatrics and neurology.
The most common specialty combinations cross-applied to were:
- Internal medicine-family medicine (6,146 cross-applicants).
- Pediatrics-internal medicine (1,738).
- Family medicine-pediatrics (1,602).
- Neurology-internal medicine (1,024).
- Anesthesiology-internal medicine (774).
Does dual applying help Match outcomes?
For all applicants, data indicates that more applications do not necessarily correlate with a better chance of matching. As noted earlier, residency-application totals tend to be higher among those applying to multiple specialties. In analyzing results from a survey of residency applicants from the 2024–2025 Match, a report from the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) found that “across all applicant types, unmatched applicants reported applying to more programs than matched applicants.”
Likewise, applying to multiple specialties may not improve your chances of landing a Match. Looking at data from the 2024 Main Residency Match—the most recent figures available from the NRMP—the average number of specialties ranked was 1.2 for U.S. allopathic senior medical students who matched, and 1.6 for those who didn’t match. For U.S. osteopathic medical school seniors, those who matched ranked 1.2 specialties on average, compared with a 1.8 average of specialties ranked for DO graduates who did not match.
Should you apply to multiple physician specialties?
The answer to that is highly individualized. If you’re applying to a physician specialty deemed to be competitive, dual applying is a pragmatic move. Just be prepared to explain your decision with clarity and sincerity if the topic comes up in interviews.
“I’d never advise against dual applying,” said John Andrews, MD, the AMA’s vice president of graduate medical education innovations and a former residency program director.
“You have to be able to say, for example, ‘My ambition is to be a dermatologist, but I recognize that it's competitive and I want to be sure I have a job next year,’” Dr. Andrews said.
Sometimes, the motivation behind the decision to apply to more than one specialty is the applicant’s personal circumstances.
“There could be some really legitimate reasons to apply in more than one specialty,” Dr. Andrews said. “You may have kids in school or are helping to care for a sick parent. You simply may need to live in one place and in that case your approach might be that you understand that if you can’t match in—for example—orthopaedic surgery, you’d be happy to work in another capacity.”
