Do you have to match at your first choice to be happy?

Opening that fateful envelope on Match Day to find that you have not matched with your top-choice residency program can be understandably disappointing for medical students. But when it comes to your long-term happiness, research bolsters the anecdotal evidence of physicians who say they have wound up satisfied and comfortable training in locations they hadn’t originally envisioned as ideal.

“I just try to alleviate people’s worries,” said Megan Chiu, MD, a general surgery resident in Cleveland who did not match with her first choice. “Obviously, everyone wants to match at their first choice, but that’s not the reality of how the system works. So, not matching at your first choice is not the end of the world.”

In this AMA news article, medical students will learn about:

• What the research says about residency program ranking and resident physicians’ satisfaction.
• The vital importance of the right fit between residents’ priorities and program culture.
• What to do with feelings of disappointment on Match Day.
• Making an effective transition to residency, regardless of your Match Day outcome.