The third Friday in March is a day of anxiety, celebration, and relief for soon-to-be graduating medical students across the United States and around the world.
At the Perelman School of Medicine, this past Friday, March 16, was marked with tears of joy, hugs, and high fives as students and their loved ones discovered where they would be spending the next three or more years of their medical careers. During the annual ceremony, students are called up one by one to receive a letter telling them where they have matched. Some choose to tear open the envelope immediately, while others find a quiet corner to learn their fate before rushing back into the auditorium to celebrate.
Jonathan Wood, who is pursuing a joint MD/MBA degree, began medical school at Penn after serving nearly eight years in the Air Force.
“I came to med school specifically to do community development and primary care in poorer communities. That’s the mission I’m really excited about,” Wood told CBS3 on Friday.
And now he’s headed to his top choice: Lancaster General Hospital for family medicine — proof, he says, that it’s never too late to pursue your passion.
According to the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP), Match Day 2018 was largest ever, with more than 33,000 residency positions up for grabs.
Check out the video above to re-live the emotion and learn where some of the students, including Wood’s classmate and fellow Match Day blogger Pratyusha Yalamanchi are headed! Check out even more stories from Friday using #PSOMMatch and view our photo album on Facebook.