Christopher Towe (left) celebrates his match with two friends. He will be a resident at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell, with a specialty in general surgery.
More than 100 medical students packed Archbold Commons Student Lounge on March 18 for "Match," the nationwide residency placement day for students to find out which program they will enter for medical training. "It was an excellent match again this year," said Dr. Antonio Gotto, dean of the Medical College. "We're all very proud of you."
Nervous excitement reverberated across the room as students anxiously waited for the official cutting of the ribbon. What lay on the other side of the line would determine the student's future for the next two years. It was a mad dash as soon as the ribbon was cut. Students rushed toward the table with the plainly marked envelopes and tore them open. Sounds of laughter, squeals and tears immediately followed. Many students and their families celebrated together. Others reached for their cell phones, calling a loved one with the news.
"Everyone's excited. We did really well," said Henry Cheng, who will be attending University of California at San Francisco for pediatrics. Cheng, who did not attend with his family, hugged his friends and fellow graduates. "They're all the family I need," he joked.
"I couldn't decide where to go," said Natalie Zelenko, who arrived with her husband. Zelenko, who will be specializing in preliminary medicine and diagnostic radiology, will be a staying in the New York City area, spending her first year at Staten Island University Hospital and Maimonides Medical Center the second. "I'm pleased with the match. My husband is happier about it than I am," she said.
Of the graduating Weill Cornell Medical College students, 31 will stay at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell; five will be at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia; seven at New York University; and three at Mount Sinai. Fifty-eight will remain in the New York City metropolitan area altogether and 21 will remain in the Northeast.
More than half (53 percent) of the graduating class matched with the most competitive teaching hospitals for their PGY1, or first post-graduate year. Seventy percent matched with the most competitive teaching hospitals for both PGY1 and PGY2. Of the PGY1 and PGY2 appointments, 22 matched with specialities in internal medicine; 20 in preliminary medicine; 17 in pediatrics; and 12 in psychiatry.
Photo by Weill Cornell Art & Photo.