What If I Do Not Match? Scrambling for a Spot and Going Outside the Match

Pamela Ritchey; Rita K Cydulka; Moshe Weizberg; Adrian Crisan; Pamela L Dyne; Mohamad Ali Cheaito; Shahram Lotfipour; Amin Kazzi

doi:10.1016/j.jemermed.2019.11.025

What If I Do Not Match? Scrambling for a Spot and Going Outside the Match

J Emerg Med. 2020 Feb;58(2):e105-e107. doi: 10.1016/j.jemermed.2019.11.025. Epub 2020 Jan 7.

Authors

Pamela Ritchey¹, Rita K Cydulka², Moshe Weizberg³, Adrian Crisan⁴, Pamela L Dyne⁵, Mohamad Ali Cheaito⁶, Shahram Lotfipour⁷, Amin Kazzi⁸

Affiliations

¹ Center for Regional Emergency Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Fairview Hospital, Cleveland, Ohio.
² Department of Emergency Medicine, MetroHealth Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio.
³ SUNY Downstate College of Medicine, New York, New York; Department of Emergency Medicine, Staten Island University Hospital, Staten Island, New York.
⁴ PIH Health Hospital-Whittier, Whittier, California.
⁵ Department of Emergency Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
⁶ Department of Emergency Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
⁷ Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine, California.
⁸ Department of Emergency Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon; Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, Irvine, California.

PMID: 31918990
DOI: 10.1016/j.jemermed.2019.11.025

Abstract

Matching into emergency medicine (EM) is getting progressively more competitive. Applicants must therefore prepare for the possibility of not matching and, accordingly, be ready to participate in the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP). In this article, we elaborate on the SOAP and the options for applicants who fail to match during Match Week. Alternative courses of action include applying for a preliminary year, matching into a categorical residency program, or aiming to secure EM spots outside the Match through the Council of Emergency Medicine Residency Directors, Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, and American Association of Medical Colleges.

Keywords: SOAP; emergency medicine; match; medical student; residency; scramble.

MeSH terms

Career Choice
Emergency Medicine / education*
Humans
Internship and Residency
Personnel Selection*
United States