Friday, March 18, 2016
On the brink of finishing four years of rigorous medical education, students from Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine’s second class gathered to find out where they will embark on the next phase of their medical training. OUWB faculty and other leaders joined the students at the Townsend Hotel in Birmingham to celebrate the school’s second Match Day on Friday, March 18. During the event, 67 students opened envelopes to discover where they will serve their residency programs as assigned by the National Residents Matching Program.
OUWB Founding Dean Robert Folberg, M.D., addressed the crowd by offering “a big thank you” to all the students, faculty and leaders who helped make the day possible. He also welcomed the many families that were in attendance.
“Match Day is a long-standing tradition," said Dr. Folberg. “This is a day every medical student looks forward to and every physician never forgets.”
Students were assigned to residencies in more than a dozen specialty areas at health systems in Metro Detroit and across the country. Of the 67 students who were matched, 11 found out they will continue their medical training at Beaumont.
“I’m very excited and happy to match at Beaumont,” said Samantha Kraemer, 26, of Brooklyn, Michigan, who will do her residency in urology. “The Beaumont medical team introduced me to urology. That’s a big part of the reason I wanted to stay at Beaumont, especially great teachers like Dr. Jay Hollander.”
It was also a special day for the academic mentors. Beaumont’s Marlene Seltzer, M.D., said, “I’m incredibly proud. I’ve been with my group for four years. They’re kids when they start and for many, medicine is just a concept, but as they grow and learn the language and how to interact with patients they mature. They’ve grown into physicians now, with the responsibility of taking care of patients. It’s fun revisiting medicine through their eyes.”
After opening his envelope, Andrew Koo, 25, of Grand Rapids, couldn’t have been happier. “Beaumont was my No. 1 choice, which is awesome. It’s the culmination of 20 years of work.” Koo will begin his OB-GYN residency on July 1.
Medical residencies run for varying time periods, depending on the specialty, and are required to become a physician in the United States.
Match Day is the culmination of a residency application process in which students rank the hospitals and medical facilities where they prefer to continue their graduate medical training. Since 1952, the National Residents Matching Program has placed graduating medical students in residencies throughout the country. OUWB’s Match Day marks the last milestone leading up to the class graduation, which is scheduled for May 13.
While allopathic medical schools, like OUWB, hold their nationwide Match Day in March, osteopathic medical schools have this special event in February. Beaumont Health also hosts osteopathic residents from across the country. Beaumont Hospital, Farmington Hills will have 38 new osteopathic residents. About half are graduates from Michigan State University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine. In addition to MSUCOM, the incoming class of residents represents 14 other medical schools and 18 medical specialties.