Internal medicine residency match the largest in history, reflecting essential role of internists

Philadelphia, March 20, 2020 -- The 2020 Main Residency Match revealed that internal medicine remains the largest training specialty, offering one-quarter (25.4 percent) of all PGY-1 positions in the Match. For the first time, all allopathic (MD) and osteopathic (DO) applicants participated in a single matching program, resulting in the largest Match in history. Internal medicine programs offered a record high 8,697 categorical positions and 430 primary care positions. Of the categorical positions, 8,324 (95.7 percent) were filled, 4,885 (56.2 percent) by U.S. medical school seniors. Of the primary care internal medicine positions, 423 (98.4%) were filled, 288 (67%) by U.S. medical school seniors.

“Internists are on the front lines of infection control, diagnosis, and treatment battling Covid-19 in ambulatory settings and in hospitals across the U.S. during this declared national public health emergency. Once again, our nation’s internists are proving their essential value in our health care system. The continual annual increases in the number of offered and matched internal medicine positions demonstrates national recognition for this value. Internists specialize in preventive care, diagnostic evaluations, acute problem management, critical care, and long-term care for multiple complex conditions,” said Davoren Chick, MD, FACP, senior vice president of medical education, American College of Physicians.

Combined internal medicine enrollment numbers have increased every year for the past 11 years. With the transition to a Single Match in which all MD and DO U.S. medical school seniors participate, the percentage of U.S. seniors matching to postgraduate year one (PGY-1) internal medicine categorical positions (56.2 percent) increased to the highest level since 2011 (57.4 percent).

“Internists have the expertise necessary to make an accurate diagnosis, propose a patient-centered management plan, partner with patients and their caregivers, provide complex care for hospitalized patients, and coordinate interprofessional team care across our complex health care system,” Dr. Chick said. “The internal medicine workforce remains the backbone of our health care system, and expansion of this workforce is imperative to provide access to specialty and subspecialty medical care for future patients.”

The number of positions offered in internal medicine-pediatrics in 2020 (390) was unchanged from 2019 and has been relatively unchanged since 2015 (380), with 97.7 percent of those positions filled, 90.3 percent filled by U.S. medical school seniors.

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About the American College of Physicians
The American College of Physicians is the largest medical specialty organization in the United States with members in more than 145 countries worldwide. ACP membership includes 159,000 internal medicine physicians (internists), related subspecialists, and medical students. Internal medicine physicians are specialists who apply scientific knowledge and clinical expertise to the diagnosis, treatment, and compassionate care of adults across the spectrum from health to complex illness. Follow ACP on Twitter and Instagram @acpinternists, and Facebook.

Contact: Edward Vassallo, (215) 351-2761, EVassallo@acponline.org