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Another Successful Match Day in 2024 at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University

By By Office of Communications & Marketing | Mar 15, 2024

Approximately 75 percent of the graduating medical school class will remain in New York State for their residencies

Brooklyn, NY (March 15, 2024) – SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University celebrated another successful Match Day today where more than 200 medical students joined thousands of their U.S. and global counterparts to learn where they will do residency assignments. Upon completing their medical degrees, new doctors must pursue at least three years of additional training in their specialties.

Every March, this rite of passage for medical students celebrates the next steps in their medical careers. On Match Day at noon (EST), medical students nationwide open their envelopes simultaneously to learn of their residency matches. An estimated 75 percent of SUNY Downstate graduates will remain in New York State.

“Match Day marks the beginning of graduate medical education, where new medical graduates learn skills to become fully trained physicians," said Wayne J. Riley, M.D., president of SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University. “Many of our new physicians choose Downstate for an excellent start, mainly because they want to serve communities in great need. We continue to be encouraged by their commitment as the healthcare landscape becomes ever more challenging. With these new graduates' exceptional medical school training at Downstate and residencies from Downstate and other notable institutions, we look forward to their tremendous success, ultimately resulting in healthier communities.”

"Today is a reminder why Match Day is so critical,” said College of Medicine dean F. Charles Brunicardi, M.D. “Our residents focus on areas of practice and real-world experiences that enhanced their strengths and commitment to healthy individuals and families, and are well-prepared to take the next critical step in their journeys."

A total of 148 graduates (73.6 percent of those who matched) will remain in New York State. There are 103 graduates (51 percent) who will remain in New York City, including 31 who will become residents at Downstate. Consequently, more Downstate graduates practice medicine in New York City and New York State than from any other U.S. medical school.

An on-campus ceremony marks Match Day, where medical students are accompanied by professors, mentors, family, friends, and classmates. Students open their Letters of Notification from the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) as a class to cheers, hugs, and screams, where impromptu celebrations are the norm.

Top specialties among the Class of 2024 include Medicine, 18 percent; Anesthesiology, 12 percent; Psychiatry, 8 percent; Emergency Medicine, 8 percent; Pediatrics, 7 percent; General Surgery, 5 percent; and Urology, 5 percent. The Class of 2024 will pursue residencies in 29 different specialties. In addition, we had 73 students who made up Primary Care with OB/GYN.

Top match institutions included: Our very own Downstate is at the top of the list, followed by Northwell Health, Montefiore Health System/NYCHH Jacobi Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

The match process begins in the fall during the final year of medical school when students apply to residency programs. Applicant interviews are conducted for possible matches throughout the fall and early winter. From mid-January to late February, applicants and programs rank each other and submit their preference lists to NRMP. A computerized mathematical algorithm matches applicants’ preferences with programs for training positions available at teaching hospitals nationwide. For more information on Match Day 2024, click here.

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About SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University

Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn is one of four academic health centers (AMCs) in The State University of New York (SUNY) 64-campus system and the only SUNY AMC in New York City dedicated to health education, research, and patient care for the borough’s 2.7 million residents. Its flagship hospital, University Hospital at Downstate (UHD), is a teaching hospital and benefits from the expertise of Downstate’s exceptional medical school and world-class academic center research facilities. With a staff of over 800 physicians representing 53 specialties and subspecialties, Downstate offers comprehensive healthcare services to the community.

UHD provides high-risk neonatal and infant services, pediatric nephrology, and dialysis for kidney diseases and is the only kidney transplantation program in Brooklyn. Beyond its clinical expertise, Downstate houses a range of esteemed educational institutions, including its College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, School of Graduate Studies, and School of Public Health. Downstate fosters innovation through its multifaceted biotechnology initiative, the Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT, which support early-stage and more mature biotech companies.