FEATURE
THE IDES of Match
Bailey Nelson, MS4
One of my newest and most enjoyable hobbies is explaining Match Day to people who are not in the medical field and seeing their reaction. It goes something like this …
“ I find out where I will be training for the next five years at the same time as 154 of my classmates in the same room. At noon Eastern Standard Time, on March 16 th, we will each open an envelope that will contain our fates. I can be placed at one of the twelve programs that I ranked, and I interviewed in the Midwest, the South and the Northeast.”
I’ ve recited this paragraph at least twenty times, but every person has had the same reaction of disbelief and the same questions …
“ What if you don’ t want to go to that city?”“ I have to … it’ s a binding contract.”“ Do you have an idea of where you will end up?”“ Kind of, but nothing is certain.”
“ So some people will be excited and others will be devastated, right?”
one room together … talk about an emotional rollercoaster of a day.”
I’ ve added an extra layer of complexity to my Match experience by getting married this June. I’ m definitely not alone, though. Many of my classmates have chosen to get married the summer after medical school because it will be one of the last extended breaks that we will have until retirement. I candidly told my fiancé,“ We can get married this summer or I can marry you in five years when I’ m finished with residency.” This added detail of my life has led to more questions …
“ Is your fiancé able to move with you?”“ Hopefully!”“ Will you all buy a house or rent where you match?”“ We will buy in cities X and Y, but rent everywhere else.”
Match Day may sound unbelievably horrifying, but the interview trail was no cakewalk. While I was on the interview trail, I got stuck in Washington D. C. overnight due to mechanical issues on a flight. Ironically, I had scheduled that connecting flight through Washington D. C. instead of Atlanta in order to avoid the Great Winter Storm of the South 2017 edition. A significant number of my classmates were trapped for days waiting for flights home. Many of them even tried to get rental cars, but eventually there were no rental cars left!
“ Yes, 155 students with a variety of different emotions will be in 12 LOUISVILLE MEDICINE