Find my path

Med school and beyond: residency and the match

Your training after the degree,one match at a time.

Four tracks require residency and five make it optional. Each has its own application portal, its own match algorithm and its own calendar. Here is the whole picture on one page.

Residency required

You cannot practise without it.

  • MD

    3 to 7 years by specialty

  • DO

    3 to 7 years by specialty

  • MD-PhD

    3 to 7 years, often with protected research time

  • DPM

    3 years

Residency optional

Boards and licensure come first; a residency is how you specialise.

  • OD

    1 year, optional

  • DMD / DDS

    1 year general practice, or 2 to 6 years for a specialty; optional unless you specialise

  • PharmD

    1 to 2 years, optional

  • PA-C

    1 year, optional

  • DPT

    1 year, optional

The physician match year

MD and DO applicants share one calendar through ERAS and the NRMP. MD-PhD applicants follow it with physician-scientist tracks; DPM, OD, dental and pharmacy run their own on similar rhythms, in the table below.

  1. June to September

    ERAS opens

    token, documents, letters requested

  2. September

    Applications released to programs

  3. October to February

    Interviews, mostly virtual

  4. February

    Rank order list certified

  5. March

    Match Week

    SOAP for the unmatched, then Match Day

See the day itself

Watch real ceremonies from medical schools, where students open their envelopes and learn where they will train.

Watch Match Day

Every match, side by side

Doctoral physicians and surgeons

MD
Residency

Required

Residency, 3 to 7 years by specialty

Apply through
MyERAS
Match
NRMP Main Residency Match
Calendar
  1. June to September: ERAS opens; token, documents, letters requested
  2. September: Applications released to programs
  3. October to February: Interviews, mostly virtual
  4. February: Rank order list certified
  5. March: Match Week: SOAP for the unmatched, then Match Day
Boards
  • USMLE Step 1
  • USMLE Step 2 CK
  • USMLE Step 3 during residency
Full guide
DO
Residency

Required

Residency, 3 to 7 years by specialty

Apply through
MyERAS
Match
NRMP Main Residency Match (single accreditation system)
Calendar
  1. June to September: ERAS opens; token, documents, letters requested
  2. September: Applications released to programs
  3. October to February: Interviews, mostly virtual
  4. February: Rank order list certified
  5. March: Match Week: SOAP for the unmatched, then Match Day
Boards
  • COMLEX-USA Level 1
  • COMLEX-USA Level 2 CE
  • COMLEX-USA Level 3 during residency
  • USMLE optional
Full guide
MD-PhD
Residency

Required

Residency (often a physician-scientist track), 3 to 7 years, often with protected research time

Apply through
MyERAS
Match
NRMP Main Residency Match; PSTP tracks within programs
Calendar
  1. September: ERAS applications to residencies and physician-scientist tracks
  2. November to January: Interviews, often multi-day with lab visits; many programs reimburse travel
  3. February: Rank order list certified
  4. March: Match Day
Boards
  • USMLE Step 1
  • USMLE Step 2 CK
  • PhD defence before the clinical years
  • USMLE Step 3 during residency
Full guide
DPM
Residency

Required

Podiatric Medicine and Surgery Residency (PMSR, optional RRA credential), 3 years

Apply through
CASPR
Match
CASPR match run by National Matching Services
Calendar
  1. September: CASPR applications open
  2. January: CRIP: the centralised interview event in Rosemont, Illinois
  3. February: Rank lists
  4. March: Match results; a scramble follows for open positions
Boards
  • APMLE Part I after year 2
  • APMLE Part II in year 4
  • APMLE Part III during residency
  • ABFAS or ABPM certification after residency
Full guide
OD
Residency

Optional

Optometric residency, 1 year

Apply through
ORMatch
Match
ORMatch run by National Matching Services
Calendar
  1. October: ORMatch applications open
  2. January to February: Interviews at colleges, clinics and VA centres
  3. February: Rank lists
  4. March: Match results
Boards
  • NBEO Part I (year 3)
  • NBEO Part II (year 4)
  • NBEO Part III clinical skills
  • State licensure; ABO certification optional
Full guide

Doctoral dental and pharmacy

DMD / DDS
Residency

Optional

Postdoctoral dental program (GPR, AEGD or a specialty), 1 year general practice, or 2 to 6 years for a specialty; optional unless you specialise

Apply through
ADEA PASS
Match
Postdoctoral Dental Matching Program run by National Matching Services, Phase I and Phase II
Calendar
  1. May to September: PASS applications; programs set their own deadlines
  2. September to February: Interviews, often with a bench test
  3. November: Phase I rank lists and results
  4. January: Phase II results for remaining positions
Boards
  • INBDE during dental school
  • Regional or state clinical licensure exam
  • Specialty boards after a specialty program
Full guide
PharmD
Residency

Optional

Pharmacy residency (PGY1, optional PGY2), 1 to 2 years

Apply through
PhORCAS
Match
ASHP Resident Matching Program run by National Matching Services, Phase I and Phase II
Calendar
  1. November to early January: PhORCAS applications
  2. January to February: Interviews, virtual or hybrid, with a clinical case presentation
  3. March: Phase I match results
  4. April: Phase II for unfilled positions
Boards
  • NAPLEX
  • MPJE or the state law exam
Full guide

Advanced practice and allied health

PA-C
Residency

Optional

Postgraduate PA fellowship, 1 year

Apply through
Program portals; some through CASPA
Match
Direct institutional review, rolling
Calendar
  1. November to April: Rolling applications timed to program start dates
  2. Varies: Interviews with surgical or emergency panels, often with shadowing
Boards
  • PANCE (NCCPA) after graduation
  • State licensure
  • PANRE for recertification
Full guide
DPT
Residency

Optional

Clinical residency, 1 year

Apply through
RF-PTCAS
Match
ABPTRFE programs; several use a direct match
Calendar
  1. October: RF-PTCAS applications open
  2. January to February: Interviews with practical assessments
  3. Spring: Offers and matches
Boards
  • NPTE (FSBPT)
  • State licensure
  • Board specialist certification after residency, optional
Full guide

Words you will meet

Rank order list
Your ranked programs, certified in the match system by its deadline. Programs rank applicants the same way; the algorithm pairs the two lists.
Match Day
The day results release. For MD and DO it is the Friday of Match Week in March; other matches publish their own dates.
SOAP
The Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program in Match Week, where unmatched MD and DO applicants apply to unfilled positions over a few days.
Phase I and Phase II
Two rounds in the dental and pharmacy matches: a second round fills positions still open after the first.
CRIP
The Centralized Residency Interview Program for podiatry: every program interviews in one place over three days in January.

Verify with the official source

Every match publishes its own calendar each cycle. Confirm dates there before you plan around them.

MedStride is not affiliated with these organizations. Dates, portals and requirements change by cycle; the official page wins over anything written here.

From the knowledge base

Keep going

Inside medical school

The four years, the doctoring course, standardized patients and how rotations run.

Exams and licensing

USMLE, COMLEX, MCCQE and NAC, the US and Canadian routes, and a study plan for each exam.

Letters

The three-plus rule, who signs for each track, and how letters reach the portal.

Interviews and travel

Four phases from the first offer to the rank list, with the setup and travel that make it work.

Match Day videos

Real ceremonies from medical schools: see the day students learn where they will train.

Fellowships

Optional subspecialty years after residency, by track.