aamc personal statement eras

Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates

ERAS Support Services

Application process.

Important Note: Certain residency specialties, including Obstetrics and Gynecology, Plastic Surgery, and certain programs in Anesthesiology, Neurology, and Urology, will not be using the ERAS application for the 2025 season. International medical students and graduates who are planning to apply for residency positions in these specialties should monitor this website for forthcoming information on how ECFMG will support your application to programs in these specialties.

• Select your residency programs of interest. There are many things to consider when exploring potential residency programs. Your residency is important because it is a time of tremendous growth both in your clinical knowledge base as well as your professional development. To achieve your goal of entering a residency program, you should effectively research programs, compare your qualifications, pinpoint your preferences for residency training, and compare programs.
• Prior to applying via ERAS ® , contact your programs of interest to determine their minimum eligibility criteria, MyERAS application deadlines, licensure requirements , and institutional policies about visas, if applicable. Much of this information can be found on each program’s website. A list of programs participating in ERAS can be found on the AAMC's website.
• Review the ERAS Timeline and Fees .

Selecting a Residency Program

Before you begin the MyERAS application process, consider your career path by researching one or more medical specialties. Selecting a medical specialty is best done with the help of advisors and mentors. It may be helpful to consult physicians practicing in the specialties you are considering. You should also consider the degree to which a given specialty would be professionally rewarding. For each specialty, it may be useful to research the overall number of positions available, the degree of competition typically experienced in obtaining a position, and the experience of prior international medical graduates, particularly graduates of your medical school, in obtaining residency positions. Detailed information on the number of positions by specialty, offered and filled by the NRMP, is available on the NRMP website .

After you have selected a specialty or specialties, you must decide to which programs within those specialties you will apply. Factors that you may wish to consider in selecting programs include the location of individual programs, their hospital affiliations, program and institution accreditation status, and the performance of their graduates. For more information about specialties and programs that participate in ERAS, refer to the ERAS Participating Specialties and Programs on the AAMC's website.

The AAMC has also worked collaboratively with nine other organizations, including ECFMG, to develop Residency Explorer , a tool that allows applicants to research residency programs across 25 specialties. Applicants can use Residency Explorer to compare their own characteristics to those of applicants who previously matched to those programs. Please note that Residency Explorer does not advise applicants on where they should apply or to which programs they may match. However, it may help applicants identify programs worth researching further.

The American Medical Association (AMA) also provides a free on-line Residency/Fellowship Training Program Search through FREIDA ™ .

Register for ERAS

• Obtain a Residency Token via ECFMG’s OASIS in the ERAS Support Services section.
• Use your Token to register at the AAMC’s MyERAS . If you have not already done so, you will be asked to create an AAMC username.

Obtain a Residency Token

Log in to ECFMG’s OASIS and select ERAS Support Services from the menu. You will then see the option to Request a Residency Token.

When will Tokens for ERAS 2025 be available? Tokens for ERAS 2025 will become available on June 26, 2024.

How much does the Token cost? There is a $165 non-refundable fee for this service.

How can I pay the Token fee? When you request your Token using OASIS, you can pay on-line using a credit card (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express). You can also pay by electronic check from a checking account at a U.S. bank.

Once I request the Token, when will it be issued, and how long will it be available? After your payment is approved, click Continue on the payment confirmation page for immediate access to your Token. Your Token will remain on the ERAS Token Request page in OASIS and may be accessed at any time during the ERAS season.

Can I use my ERAS 2025 Token to apply in future seasons? No. The ERAS software will not recognize a Token issued for previous ERAS seasons. You need one Token per ERAS season, and you can use that one Token to apply to as many specialties and programs as you want during the ERAS season. You can also use your 2025 Token to apply for both a clinical year position (PGY-1), which begins in 2025, and for an advanced position (PGY-2), which begins in 2026 (e.g., Radiology, Neurology, etc.).

I am not a residency applicant. How do I request a Fellowship Token? Fellowship Tokens must be requested through the ERAS Fellowships Documents Office (EFDO) . Tokens requested through ECFMG’s OASIS are for residency applications only. If you are currently enrolled in a residency program and require a Token for a fellowship application, you must request your Token through EFDO.

Complete the MyERAS Application

• Once you have registered at MyERAS, you can begin to work on your MyERAS application and Personal Statement . You can also create your personal list of Letter of Recommendation (LoR) authors and confirm the authors for upload.
• IMPORTANT NOTE : You will be required to certify your MyERAS application on-line at MyERAS. Do not certify your application until you are absolutely sure the information that you have provided is accurate and complete. Once you certify your application, it cannot be changed. ERAS Support Services at ECFMG does not have access to your MyERAS application.

Submit Supporting Documents

• Begin submitting your supporting documents to ERAS Support Services at ECFMG. See Submission At-a-Glance for details on submitting ERAS documents.
• Refer to your list of confirmed LoR Authors in MyERAS and provide your letter writer(s) with the Letter Request form. The Request Form includes all information your letter writer(s) will need to submit an LoR through the AAMC’s LoR Portal .
• If you participated in ERAS 2024, you are eligible to reuse documents that were available in your previous application. For information, please review Reusing Documents .
• If your medical school participates in the ECFMG Medical School Web Portal (EMSWP) ERAS program, the school must submit your medical school transcript and Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE) via EMSWP ERAS. To find out if your school participates in EMSWP ERAS, contact the Dean’s office of your medical school.
• IMPORTANT NOTE : Supporting documents may take up to five business days to process once submitted. You should make every effort to ensure your supporting documents are received by ECFMG in time for evaluation by programs and to meet program deadlines.
• Track the status of your documents in MyERAS.

Apply to Programs

• On September 4, at 9:00 a.m., Eastern Time in the United States, you may begin applying to programs. All applications submitted September 4 through September 25 will appear to programs as submitted on September 25. ERAS Support Services at ECFMG highly recommend that you submit all of your supporting documents no later than September 17 to help ensure their availability on September 25 at 9:00 a.m., when programs begin accessing applications.

Register for the NRMP Match

• Beginning on September 16, register with NRMP in order to participate in this season’s Match.

Monitor Your Applications

• Go to the Applied-to Programs section of MyERAS to verify which programs have received your application.
• MyERAS will display the date and time each document was made available to each applied-to program. MyERAS will not display whether a program has viewed the application and supporting documents.

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Important Dates

• June 26: ERAS 2025 residency Tokens become available through ECFMG’s OASIS , and applicants can begin registering their Tokens on the AAMC’s MyERAS website.
• Independence Day Holiday: ERAS Support Services will close on July 4 and reopen July 8.

All times shown are Eastern Time in the United States.

Stay Connected

• Sign up for The ECFMG Reporter
• Contact ERAS Support Services

Quick Links

• Announcements
• Residency Explorer
• Tools for Residency Applicants
• Policies and Procedures Regarding Irregular Behavior
• IMG Performance in 2024 Match
• Charting Outcomes in the Match for IMGs, a report by NRMP  

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• Prepare for Residency

Electronic Residency Application Service® (ERAS®)

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Depending on your chosen specialty and programs, you may use one or more application services: Electronic Residency Application Service® (ERAS®). ERAS provides a central…

The number of residency positions has remain relatively stagnant, while class sizes have increased and new U.S. medical schools have opened. Add in increasing numbers of…

  The Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program®, or SOAP®, is the process during Match Week to connect the unmatched or partially matched residency applicants with the…

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How to write your personal statement for ERAS/residency applications

The personal statement is occasionally a chance to “make” your application, but it’s always a risk to “break” it.

Keep in mind: it’s only 1 page (literally—it should fit on no more than one page when printed from the ERAS application, which is somewhere around 750-800 words on the longer end; 600-650 is a better goal; mine was around 500). On one interview, I was told that the program’s main criteria for evaluating personal statements was not noteworthiness but rather inoffensiveness .

Questions to ask yourself in approaching the PS:

• What are the reasons for choosing the specialty?
• What are my career plans?
• What accomplishments do I want to emphasize?
• What outside interests do I have?
• What contributions can I make to the specialty and the residency program?

You don’t have to answer all of these questions, but answering one or two will help you get the point of view you need to get a draft going.

The personal statement is a chance to state why you are choosing a specialty (and a location or a specific program) and to try to convince the reader that you are a good fit. While you are trying to say that you are awesome, you cannot simply say you are awesome . Like fiction, you should show, not tell when possible. This is not a CV in paragraph form. You must be more subtle.

Things to do:

• Give yourself plenty of time to write; start now.
• Write more than one. Tell your story from multiple angles and see which one comes out on top.
• Often your first essay is not the best.
• Consider explaining gaps in your application (leave of absence, course failure, low Step 1)
• If there are particular programs you are desperate for, you may consider tailoring your statement for them. The individualized approach is obvious and is unlikely to make the desired impact. If you tailor, don’t be a sycophant (it’s too transparent). The most important time to individualize your PS is if you discuss, for example, your desire to be part of a big bustling academic center: make sure to change that if you are applying to a small community program.
• Be straightforward in your writing
• Edit and proofread your work carefully . Then do it again. And again. And then one last time for good measure.
• Be concise. Edit down until every word counts. I personally subscribe to the common reviewer adage: “The more you write, the less I read.”
• Ask for second opinions and feedback; you don’t always have to listen but it’s important to receive.
• Your parents and significant others are wonderful readers, but they are generally insufficient. They love you too much. Have your PS vetted by your Specialty and Faculty Mentors .

Things to avoid:

• Self-Congratulatory Statements
• Self-Centered Statements
• “Emotional” Stories (give it a try, but be wary). Telling your reader about your feelings directly often makes the feelings themselves feel contrived.
• Reality embellishment (anything you write is fair game as interview fodder; if you can’t discuss it at length, then it shouldn’t be there)
• Using tired analogies (or any analogies, really)
• Quotations (you couldn’t think of 500 words of your own?)
• Remember, your reader has a stack of applications. Don’t make your essay hurt to read, overly cutesy, or sappy to the point where it’s no longer convincing.

For most people, your personal statement will not/cannot stand out in a good way (standing out in a bad way, though, is entirely possible). Why you pursued medicine may have been an interesting story (hint: it probably wasn’t), but why you chose your specialty is likely even more banal. If you don’t feel like you have anything special to say, it’s because you don’t. That’s normal. Aim for competence.

There are sample essays available for perusal on medfools . I think even the “good” ones are pretty painful in general, but your mileage may vary. Here are some good tips from UNC. The AAMC Advisor also has some quick advice . If your remember your login, Careers in Medicine also has similar stuff.

These are very good recommendations. In addition to proofreading and seeking advice from friends and family, I would also suggest considering a professional editing service. Although some of them can be costly, they see thousands of personal statements and will be able to objectively tell you if yours is competitive. This article also provides some good advice on residency personal statements: https://www.codeblueessays.com/top-7-tips-writing-residency/

I don’t agree with the need for professional services for the vast majority of applicants, and I really dislike people promoting their services through comments on my blog. In this case, the linked article isn’t terrible, so I’m not deleting this.

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Related posts, explanations for the 2016 official step 1 practice questions, how to write (and maybe understand) a usmle-style question, recommended reading for first-year radiology residents, the mini step 1.

MyERAS® Documents for Fellowship Applicants

New section.

• Sign In to MyERAS
• ERAS® Fellowship Application Timeline
• ERAS® Participating Specialties and Programs

Within your MyERAS ® account, you may create personal statement(s); identify the people who will write your letters of recommendation (LoRs); and release your Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination of the United States (COMLEX-USA) and/or United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) transcripts. You will also assign most documents to the programs, track the status of these and any additional ERAS documents. Applicants should research programs individually to determine those requirements before making document assignments.

The ERAS Fellowship Documents Office ( EFDO) is the Designated Dean's Office for all fellowship applicants whether a U.S. medical school graduate or an international medical school graduate. Applicants should visit the EFDO website for information about submitting their documents for upload or obtaining contact information when additional information is needed. The EFDO no longer accepts paper documents for fellowship applications. Documents sent via mail or courier to their offices will not be processed.

EFDO Online Services allows applicants to upload certain document types themselves, as well as send requests to your medical school to upload their MSPE and medical school transcript. A unique link to the EFDO Online Services account for each applicant is only available within the MyERAS portal on the Additional Documents page under Documents.

Below you will find an overview of each of the main documents used in ERAS. For detailed information, please see the Documents section of the MyERAS user guide.

Tracking Documents

Uploaded but Unassigned LoRs - Count of LoRs that have been uploaded but are not assigned to any programs, highlighting that assignments may need to be made.

Unassigned Personal Statements - Count of Personal Statements that have been saved but are not assigned to any programs, highlighting that assignments may need to be made.

Latest USMLE Request Status - Current status of the latest request made to the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) or the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates ( ECFMG) (for IMG Residency) after at least one program has been applied to with the USMLE transcript assigned.

Latest COMLEX-USA Request Status - Current status of the latest request made to the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME) after at least one program has been applied to with the COMLEX-USA transcript assigned.

Status of Additional Documents - Status of all other applicable documents as either Not Uploaded or Uploaded.

Dimensions: 2.5 in. x 3.5 in.

File Size: 100kb

Personal Statement

Special Note About Formatting

Creating LoR Entries - You must create a LoR entry for each LoR you intend to use during the application season.

Confirming LoR Entries - You must confirm a LoR entry before an associated Letter ID can be generated.

Uploading LoRs - The Letter ID contained in the LoR Request form must be used to upload the associated LoR through the Letter of Recommendation Portal (LoRP) .

Assigning LoRs - Applicants may assign of up to four (4) LoRs to each program.

Authorizing the Release for the USMLE Transcript - Applicants must authorize the release of their USMLE transcript in order to make assignments of the USMLE transcript to the programs they designate.

Paying for the USMLE Transcript - The NBME or ECFMG (for IMG Residency) charges a one time fee of $80 for transmitting USMLE transcripts to the programs designated by applicants.

Viewing the USMLE Requests Status Report - Applicants can view the USMLE Requests Status Report to track the status of their USMLE requests by program.

Authorizing the Release for the COMLEX-USA Transcript - Applicants must authorize the release of their COMLEX-USA transcript in order to make assignments of the COMLEX-USA transcript to the programs they designate.

Paying for the COMLEX-USA Transcript - The NBOME or ECFMG (for IMG Residency) charges a one time fee of $80 for transmitting COMLEX-USA transcripts to the programs designated by applicants.

Viewing the COMLEX-USA Requests Status Report - Applicants can view the COMLEX-USA Requests Status Report to track the status of their COMLEX-USA requests by program.

Medical School (MS) Transcript

American board of surgery in-training examination (absite), img-only documents.

ECFMG Status Report: The ECFMG Status Report confirms the ECFMG certification status for an IMG residency applicant. This report contains the month and year that examinations were passed for ECFMG Certification, but does not contain your USMLE transcript.

Please contact the AAMC Support Center (ASC) .

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Please visit ERAS ®  Fellowships Documents Office (EFDO) website.

Please visit this page to stay up to date on ERAS news and announcements.

The MyERAS User Guide, ERAS timeline, FAQs and more are available to provide helpful information to fellowship applicants about the MyERAS application and ERAS process.

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ERAS FAQs (10 Residency Application Questions Answered)

• By Med School Insiders
• July 10, 2023
• Medical Student
• ERAS , Residency Application

While on the surface, it may seem like it’s quite similar to your medical school primary application, each component of your residency application must reveal a deep sense of growth, maturity, and dedication to medicine. Residencies provide on-the-job training so that you can earn your medical license and begin practicing professionally as a physician. The stakes are much higher, and your application must reflect this.

For most programs, you will submit your residency application through the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) , which is the centralized online application service applicants use to deliver their application and supporting documents to residency programs. ERAS simplifies the application process for applicants as well as their letter of recommendation authors, program directors, and Designated Dean’s Office.

In this post, we break down 10 frequently asked questions about the ERAS process, including how to apply, how much it costs, how the Match works, couples matching, and more.

When you’re done here, read our comprehensive residency application guide , which is updated every application cycle.

1. How Do I Access MyERAS?

To access MyERAS, you need to contact your Designated Dean’s Office, and they will give you a token (one-time access code) with which you can register for MyERAS. Your documents will not be uploaded accurately with a token from a different school.

Make sure that your token is from the current MyERAS season. A token from a previous season won’t work. You can only use an ERAS token once to register.

You also need an AAMC account to register for MyERAS.

2. How Much Do Residency Applications Cost?

ERAS application fees are based on the number of programs you apply to per specialty.

Applying to up to ten programs will cost you $99. Applying to 11-20 programs will cost $19 per program. Applying to 21-30 programs will cost $23 per program, and applying to 31 programs or more will cost $27 per program.

There are also additional fees, which include your USMLE transcript ($80) if you’re studying to be an MD or your COMLEX-USA transcript ($80) if you’re studying to become an osteopath (DO). Both of these are assessed once per season.

MyERAS will automatically calculate your fees. You can pay online using Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover. ERAS does not offer refunds, no matter the circumstances.

3. Do All Programs Participate in ERAS?

Most residency specialties use the match system run by the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). Each participating specialty matches on the same day in mid-March.

A few specialties match early, while some use other matching programs. These unique matching specialties include Ophthalmology and Urology, which match in January, and military residency programs that use their own matching system.

Use the FREIDA website to determine which programs do not participate in ERAS.

4. How Does the Match Process Work?

The NRMP Match, based on a Nobel Prize-winning algorithm first outlined by Alvin Roth and Lloyd Shapley in the 1960s, is designed to even the playing field for residency applicants.

After the long and tedious process of applying for residency through ERAS, both applicants and residency programs submit their Rank Order List (ROL) in February.

A rank list is an ordered list of the programs an applicant would like to attend in descending order. Rank Order Lists are also completed by residency programs based on the applicants the program would like to recruit.

The Match algorithm prioritizes a student’s preference over a program’s preference but aims to find the best possible match for both students and programs.

Our YouTube video provides a visual example of how students are matched by NRMP.

5. When Is the ERAS Residency Application Deadline?

The ERAS season begins in early June. This is when you will obtain your token from your Designated Dean’s Office and gain access to MyERAS. You will use the next few months to fill in your application, request relevant transcripts, confirm your residency letters of recommendation , and fine-tune each component, such as your residency personal statement.

ERAS begins accepting applications in early September, and applications are released to programs at the end of September. It’s possible to receive an interview invitation as early as the next day, so it’s imperative to send your application as soon as possible. If you delay, you could miss out on the first round of interviews.

Technically speaking, the ERAS season ends on May 31, but disregard this! For your best chance of matching with one of your top programs, apply as soon as applications open at the beginning of September.

For more details, check out our 2023-2024 Residency Application Timeline and Month-by-Month Schedule .

6. Does Registering for ERAS Register You for NRMP?

No, registering for ERAS does not automatically register you for NRMP, as they are separate organizations. The Main Residency Match opens September 15, 2023. If you’re on top of your application materials and submit your residency application soon after applications open, you can register for NRMP after that.

Use the NRMP’s secure Registration, Ranking, and Results (R3) system to register and create a username and password. Note that just like with ERAS, you must have an AAMC ID to register for the Main Residency Match.

After registering with NRMP, log back into ERAS and update your profile with your NRMP ID. This will make it easier for program directors to identify you for placement on their program’s rank order lists.

Learn how to register for the Match .

7. How Does ERAS Differ From Medical School Applications?

ERAS and the Match are different from other applications because you will only match with a single program. When applying to medical school, you likely received multiple acceptances at different times and were able to choose the school you were most excited to attend.

But on Match Day, you will be told which program you matched into, if you matched into one at all. The Match is a binding agreement; you are not able to hold out for something better. You are required to matriculate to that residency program. This is why it’s so important to invest significant time in researching different programs and developing your Rank Order List (ROL).

Learn about 5 Factors to Consider When Choosing Where to Spend Residency .

While similar, the personal statement is also slightly different. You are no longer a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed premed; you are a young medical professional who has earned their doctorate, and your personal statement must reflect this deeper dedication to medicine.

You will not be able to rehash your medical school personal statement. The success of your ERAS personal statement depends on your ability to effectively communicate how your professional development and experiences in medical school have made it clear to you which specialty you belong in. Illustrate how you have matured with tangible examples, and make sure your personal statement ties into the overall narrative of your application.

Learn more with our Residency Application Personal Statement Guide .

8. How Many Letters of Recommendation Do I Need For Residency?

While you can add an unlimited number of references, you can only submit 4 letters of recommendation per program. Your MSPE or Dean’s Letter do not count as one of your letters.

Your letters cannot be addressed to the specific residency program; they must be standardized instead so that your letter writers don’t need to draft multiple different letters.

It’s a good idea to have one of your letters written by an attending or mentor in your specialty who you worked side-by-side with, as they will be able to authentically and specifically speak to your skills and why you belong in your chosen specialty. Choose writers from a variety of specialties who know you well and are willing to write you STRONG letters of recommendation. Just like with med school applications, a poor or lukewarm letter will only hurt your application.

You may also be required to obtain a letter from someone in a non-medical field. Each program’s specific requirements can be found on their website. Carefully examine these requirements to determine exactly what you will need.

Learn more with our ERAS Residency Letters of Recommendation Guide .

9. How Does Couples Matching Work?

If you’re in a committed relationship with another medical student in your current year and you plan on building a future together, couples matching makes sure your respective residency programs will be in the same geographic location.

Dating long distance while you’re both in residency will put a significant strain on any relationship, no matter how strong it is. It’s very unlikely your schedules will match up, and years of sporadic asynchronous communication is unfair to both of you.

However, it is important to note that your chance of matching at your top-choice program is lower when couples matching. While it’s a simple enough process, it will require a massive amount of compromise, coordination, and sacrifice.

In order to couples match, you need to pair your rank list with your partner’s. When you log into the NRMP website, both of you must agree that you want your rank lists coupled. After that, you will need to make your lists together and make sure each line matches up.

The matching algorithm will consider your pairs of program choices. You will match to your most preferred pair of programs on your rank order list where each of you have been offered a position. You will successfully match when both lists find a match on the same line.

While it’s a good idea to ask your deans and advisors for advice, the best resource you have for couples matching is other couples who have recently and successfully couples matched themselves.

For more information, learn from two physicians who successfully matched together: Residency Couples Match – Shedding Light and Debunking Myths , and be sure to read Couples in the Match on the NRMP website.

10. What Happens If You Don’t Match?

On the Monday of Match Week, you will find out if you matched but not where you matched. If you find out you did not match, you will need to participate in the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP).

SOAP is a service of the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) and the channel through which qualified unmatched applicants in the Main Residency Match apply for and are offered positions that were not filled during the initial matching algorithm.

SOAP runs from Monday to Thursday and gives unmatched students another shot at matching with a residency program during a tumultuous four days of new applications and interviews.

Learn the ins and outs with our SOAP Match Guide (Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program) .

Unfortunately, even after participating in SOAP, there’s still a chance you will end up with a no match. While this is an undeniably hard pill to swallow, all is not lost, and there is plenty you can do to prepare for next year.

What’s most important is that you set time aside to acknowledge and process your emotions, which are sure to be overwhelming. Don’t take to social media; in fact, stay off of it altogether. Once you have processed the initial onslaught of these powerful emotions, begin to reassess your application and seek feedback. Where did you go wrong? Was there a notable weak area?

While almost every piece of your application can be improved, it’s best to choose a couple of problem areas and focus your effort there. Build a plan of attack, be on the lookout for opportunities, and utilize your time effectively to ensure you build a residency application you’re truly proud of.

Learn more: What to Do if You Don’t Match Into Residency (After SOAP) .

Perfect Your Residency Application With Med School Insiders

If you are hoping for a successful match on your first attempt, it is vital that you approach your residency application with care and tact. But you don’t have to do it alone.

Our team of doctors at Med School Insiders has years of experience helping medical students get matched with their ideal program. Don’t believe us? Just take a look at our results .

We can help you prepare a stand out residency application that gets you matched into your ideal programs. We offer a number of Residency Admissions Consulting Services tailored to your needs, including personal statement editing , USMLE tutoring , interview prep and mock interviews , and overall application editing .

For more strategies as well as the latest medical school and industry news, follow the Med School Insiders blog , which has hundreds of resources, guides, and personal stories.

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• TCOM Office of Medical Student Success

Writing Your Personal Statement for Residency

Tips to convey “ why you for residency specialty”, use your personal statement to introduce yourself to your interviewer..

• Include topics that help the interview go smoothly.
• Be sincere and help the interviewer know what’s important to you.
• Include only the information that you want to discuss.

Write a focused essay, four or five paragraphs in length, that covers the basics.

• The first paragrap h could introduce the reader to you and could focus on what led you to a career in medicine, more importantly your specialty. The tone of the first paragraph sets the tone for the rest of your personal statement.
• The second paragraph should let the reader know how you arrived at your choice of the specialty. (Personal experiences from rotations, leadership activities, work, volunteer, community service, studying abroad, background and/or life/ family experiences).
• The third/fourth paragraphs should confirm why you think this choice is right for you AND why you are right for the specialty. This is an opportunity further distinguish yourself.
• The  close/final paragraph could inform the reader what you see as your long-term goals and/or how you see yourself in this specialty. Also, avoid spending too much content on “ What I want/seek/am interested in from a residency program …” The focus should be more on why they should choose you over other candidates

Questions to ask when approaching your Personal Statement:

• What are the reasons for choosing the specialty?
• What are your key attributes?
• What contributions can I make to the specialty and the residency program?
• What are your career plans and how will your background/additional education contribute to the field?
• What makes me unique enough to stand out among other candidates?

Your goal should be to write a well-crafted statement that is both original in its presentation and grammatically correct. Articulate your personal drive in as eloquent language as you can provide. The writing should flow. No one expects you to be a novelist. The most important thing is to write a concise, clear statement about why you?

Don’t spend a lot of time providing information about you that programs will generally assume to be true for most competent medical students; “I want to help people”, “I love medicine”, “I want to match into a residency program where I can learn”

If you explain your reasons for entering the field of medicine, do so to inform the reader of points beyond the career choice. Avoid spending too much time on “Why I Wanted to Go into Medicine.” How did you arrive at your specialty choice and what experiences support how you arrived at the specialty choice?

Support your strengths and skillset with examples . Most medical student personal statement list similar strengths, “hard worker/will work hard”, “good communication skills”, “relate to/interact with patients” – so if you provide strengths that are common among medical students or even unique to you, it will be important to provide evidence to support your claims, directing programs to come to their own conclusion about your strength.

I f you repeat accomplishments already listed on your CV , they should be relevant to your personal/professional growth. You want the emphasis to encourage the reader to bring this up in the interview.

Use your own words rather than rely on quotes; your own thoughts are more powerful. If you can make it work, great, but don’t dwell on quotes. With only 800 words or less…it is favorable to make them all your own.

Do NOT plagiarize your personal statement.

Length ; Since one page in length in a Word Doc is not the same as what one page will equal one page in ERAS for personal statement formatting, the key is stick to 750-850 words for your ERAS/residency application personal statement. One page in ERAS equals nearly 1,200 words, however most programs preferences for a typical personal statements in terms of Word Count will be within range of 650-850 – this will be acceptable for most residency programs.

Need a review of your personal statement…professional review and editing?

• Melva Landrum , TCOM Residency Counselor will provide thorough feedback through an evaluation form that breaks down your entire personal statement including: content, grammar, structure, flow and overall impact. You can email your personal statement to [email protected] within one week.
• The Career Center can also review personal statements and Center for Academic Performance (CAP) office can provide feedback mostly on grammar and structure.

This page was last modified on November 10, 2023

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July 11, 2022

13 Essential Do’s and Don’ts for Your Residency Personal Statement

Residency applicants can submit applications via ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service) starting September 7th. Don’t wait until the last minute – get cracking on those residency essays now!

Why is your residency essay so important?

Your personal statement is a vital part of your residency application ; it’s where you’ll explain why you’ve chosen your specialty and show the committee why you’re the best candidate for training. And unlike other pieces of your application (such as your letters of recommendation or your medical school transcript), your personal statement is something that you have complete control over. 

For a knockout personal statement, heed these do’s and don’ts!

• DON’T reuse your med school personal statement When you applied to medical school, you had to demonstrate an interest in medicine and demonstrate that you had the potential to become a successful doctor. At this point in your education, you are a doctor – or about to be one. Unless your premed school career is very relevant to your specialty choice, there’s no need to explain why you originally pursued medicine. And if you reuse your med school personal statement, your specialty decision could come across as unformed or immature.
• DO explain why you have chosen your specialty Your decision to pursue a certain specialty is a personal one, and program directors want to hear about it. Did you have a mentor who helped you see dermatology in a new way or did you love your time in the pathology lab? What is it about delivering babies that thrills you more than caring for them after they’re born? Use specific examples to illustrate your story and your distinctive experiences and perspectives. Most importantly, where do you see yourself in the future? Make your choice unambiguous and your commitment undeniable.
• DON’T offer superficial or generic explanations for choosing your specialty “Internal medicine is like solving a puzzle.” “GPs serve as gatekeepers.” “The OR just feels like home.” Cliches like these – without the proper care – can be the death knell for personal statements. But what if you do love diagnostic puzzles, or enjoy helping patients navigate the healthcare system? What if you really do feel most comfortable in a surgical environment?
• DO bring out your unique experiences and perspectives Sharing the very specific details of your experiences and supporting your explanation can elevate your reasons from a generic cliche to a specific, and personal insight. Use anecdotes to illustrate your story and bring your unique experiences and perspectives to life. To explain why you like the fast-paced energy of the emergency room, share a particular experience you had there, how your people skills and your ability to stay calm under pressure came into play, and how you felt a sense of accomplishment in helping patients in distress. To explain why pain medicine appeals to you, you might mention how you connected with an anesthesiologist who opened your eyes to the potential of this field. The more examples you can give about why this specialty is the specialty for you, the better.
• DON’T sound pompous or self-important When describing your skills, be mindful of the line between confidence and smugness. You want to sound enthusiastic and confident, but never arrogant or boastful . For example, it can be very off-putting to a reader if you talk about how work was too easy for you, making it sound like you think you’re more accomplished than everyone you worked with. After all, your readers are considering you as a potential colleague.
• DO emphasize your strengths with tact and grace You’ve gained some valuable technical skills and exposure to clinical practice, but so have all your classmates. Which of your unique qualities will make your #1 residency program rank you as their #1 choice? Your personal experiences, both in medical school and outside, reveal more about you than your CV and USMLE Step exams. A good way to think about this is in the context of what’s needed for that specialty. Will the listening skills you developed through mentoring premeds help you as a family practitioner? Have quick reflexes, honed through years of playing piano, prepared you for the technical dexterity you’ll need in surgery? Will teamwork skills developed at the student-run clinic help you contribute to an obstetrics team? Select specific examples that demonstrate your strengths and make your essay come alive.
• DON’T send the same personal statement to every program You’re probably applying to many residency programs and the thought of tailoring each one is daunting. Yet each program has certain distinctions that make it unique. If your personal statement talks about how much you love research and hope to continue that pursuit during your residency training, program directors in community-based programs might not think you’re a good fit for them. On the other hand, a completely generic statement of what you’re looking for in residency won’t appeal to anyone. How can you show your interest in specific programs without getting overwhelmed?
• DO create multiple interchangeable versions of your personal statement While it’s unreasonable to suggest writing a different essay for every school, tailoring certain features in a limited number of essays can be a useful strategy. You might have one version for academic programs that emphasizes your future research interests, while your version for community-based programs leaves that line out and focuses on clinical opportunities. Or you might have a version for rural programs vs. urban, or for programs in your preferred geographic location vs. the rest of the country. ERAS allows you to save multiple versions that you can upload to certain schools – just be sure you give each one a unique name to keep them straight.
• DO tailor your essay to your top program Do you have a dream program, one where you’re sure you’d be able to excel? If so, it’s well worth the extra time and effort to detail exactly why you want to rank it #1. This may sound like a lot of work, but it really doesn’t take long to identify why you want to work with a specific researcher or continue learning where you had a great externship. Don’t underestimate the bonus points you can get for this approach. Tailoring your essay to their specific offerings demonstrates that you’ve done your homework and are genuinely interested.
• DON’T use all 28,000 characters for your personal statement ERAS permits 28,000 characters for your essay – around 7,000 words! – but no residency director wants to read even close to that much. Instead, stick to a one-page essay – usually 600-800 words – that addresses your key points. Your essay will be more effective if you’re more to the point and concise. In order to do that well, 
• DO keep your purpose in mind As you write, remember that you’re trying to land an interview, not detail every aspect of your medical school training. If you throw in everything but the kitchen sink, your story will be generic and lack any impact. Instead, select the key experiences that led you to your chosen specialty, the details that will demonstrate your fit for it, and where you see your future contributions in this field.
• DON’T submit without proofreading In their rush to submit, some applicants skip this step, only to later find a typo they’re unable to correct. To avoid this, take a break from writing – at least a few hours, or better yet, a day – before carefully proofreading your essay. Try reading aloud as you go along. Since your ear often picks up what your eye misses on the screen, you’ll be more likely to catch awkward phrases, repetitive sentences or ideas, or other glitches.
• DO have someone else also read your essay Even after you’ve done your own quality control, your own writing is so familiar that it’s all too easy to miss a typo. You also want to ensure that the entire essay reads well, hitting the high points that are most important, and striking the right tone. Getting the all-clear from another reader will give you confidence that you are ready to submit!

You’ve worked so hard to get to this point in your journey. Now that you’re ready for your next achievement, make sure you know how to present yourself to maximum advantage in your residency applications. In a hotly competitive season, you’ll want a member of Team Accepted in your corner, guiding you with expertise tailored specifically for you. Check out our flexible consulting packages today!

Related Resources:

• From Example to Exemplary , a free guide to writing outstanding application essays
• All You Need to Know About Residency Applications and Matching
• M3 Journaling: How to Do it and How it Can Help Your Residency Application

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Report on Residents

2023 report on residents executive summary.

• Table A1. Continuity of Specialty Preference on the Matriculating Student Questionnaire and the 2023 Graduation Questionnaire
• Table B1. Experiences of First-Year Residents by Specialty
• Table B2. First-Attempt Pass Rates on USMLE and COMLEX Examinations for First-Year Residents by Specialty
• Table B3. Number of Active Residents, by Type of Medical School, GME Specialty, and Gender
• Table B4. MD-PhD Residents, by GME Specialty
• Table B5. Number of Active MD Residents, by Race/Ethnicity (Alone or In Combination) and GME Specialty
• Table B6. Number of Active DO Residents, by Race/Ethnicity (Alone or In Combination) and GME Specialty
• Table C1. Number of Graduates of U.S. MD-Granting and DO-Granting Schools, by Last Completed GME Specialty
• Table C2. Number of Individuals Who Completed Residency and Are Practicing in Federally Designated Medically Underserved Areas, by Last Completed GME Specialty
• Table C3. Number of Individuals Who Completed Residency and Are Practicing in Federally Designated Medically Underserved Areas, by State
• Table C4. Physician Retention in State of Residency Training, by Last Completed GME Specialty
• Table C5. Physician Retention in State of Residency Training, by Last Completed GME Specialty and Gender
• Table C6. Physician Retention in State of Residency Training, by State
• Table C7. Full-Time Faculty-Appointment Status at U.S. Medical Schools for Residents Who Completed Residencies, by Specialty
• Table C8. Full-Time Faculty-Appointment Status at U.S. Medical Schools for Residents Who Completed Residencies, by Specialty and Rank
• 2022 Report on Residents Executive Summary
• Table A1. Continuity of Specialty Preference on the Matriculating Student Questionnaire and the 2022 Graduation Questionnaire
• 2021 Report on Residents Executive Summary
• Table A1. Continuity of Specialty Preference on the Matriculating Student Questionnaire and the 2021 Graduation Questionnaire
• Table B1. Test Scores and Experiences of First-Year Residents, by Specialty
• Table B2. USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK Scores of First-Year Residents by Specialty
• Table B3. Number of Active Residents, by Type of Medical School, GME Specialty, and Sex
• Table C5. Physician Retention in State of Residency Training, by Last Completed GME Specialty and Sex
• 2020 Report on Residents Executive Summary
• Table A1. Continuity of Specialty Preference on the Matriculating Student Questionnaire and the 2020 Graduation Questionnaire
• 2019 Report on Residents Executive Summary
• Table A1. Continuity of Specialty Preference on the Matriculating Student Questionnaire and the 2019 Graduation Questionnaire
• Table B2. USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK Scores of First-Year Residents, by Specialty
• Table C1. Number of Medical School Graduates, by Last Completed GME Specialty

Download the 2023 Report on Residents Executive Summary (PDF)

The AAMC Report on Residents is an online collection of data tables that includes current and historical data related to graduate medical education (GME). These tables provide information about characteristics of residency applicants and residents and about post-residency professional activities. This report will help residency applicants, residency program directors, residency specialty organizations, and researchers understand the changing body of residents and fellows at a critical time in their medical training. The AAMC wishes to acknowledge the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM), American Medical Association (AMA), American Osteopathic Association (AOA), Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME), and National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME) for helping make these analyses possible.

Methodology

This publication complements existing data reports that address different aspects of GME. It incorporates multiple sources of information when possible, using the wide range of data available to the AAMC and described in Table 1.

In each data table, the year or years of data included represent the most recent data available. The specific years of data, and the data sources used, are identified for each table either as part of the table or in the notes.

The report’s data sources have different participation rates, which vary across years. Approximate participation rates for each data source, when available, are provided in Table 1. Because many of the report’s tables combine data from different data sources, the number of individuals in a given report is limited to those for whom we have data for all relevant variables. Counts of individuals are included in all the report’s tables.

The Report on Residents is organized in chronological order of progression through GME: pre-residency, residency, and post-residency. Some tables display data by specialties and subspecialties accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). According to the ACGME, a specialty program is a “structured educational experience in a field of medical practice following completion of medical school and, in some cases, prerequisite basic clinical education designed to conform to the Program Requirements of a particular specialty.” 1 The prerequisite specialties include programs that serve as preliminary training for residents who intend to subspecialize. A subspecialty program is a “structured educational experience following completion of a prerequisite specialty program in graduate medical education designed to conform to the Program Requirements of a particular subspecialty area.” 1 The specialty identified as “Transitional Year” includes programs that provide training in multiple disciplines to help residents prepare for selecting and entering a specialty.

Tables displaying data on first-year residents may include residents who later enter another specialty or subspecialty. This mostly affects specialties such as General Surgery, Internal Medicine, and Pediatrics, in which a one-year experience may be required before the resident trains in another specialty. Also, a large percentage of those completing residencies in these three specialties go on to complete subspecialties within those specialties. For data displays that include people who have completed their residencies (“completed residents”) or practicing physicians by specialty, the most recently completed GME specialty or subspecialty is shown. Residents who completed training in a specialty but are active in another GME program are excluded from the counts of completed residents or practicing physicians, unless otherwise noted.

Table 1. Data Sources Available to the AAMC

Selected findings.

The Report on Residents examines unique trends among states, specialties, and phases of the GME continuum. The tables and the selected findings below are organized by progression through GME to reflect the different ways that people use the data. For example, current medical students looking to apply to residency programs may be interested in the experiences of first-year residents in various specialties. Alternatively, state policy analysts focusing on workforce or funding issues may be concerned with retaining physicians who completed residency training in a particular state.

Pre-residency

• Over the course of medical school, most medical students change their preferred residency specialty. For the past three years, between 26% and 28% (27.2% in 2023) of respondents to the GQ indicated the same specialty preference as they had on the MSQ (Table A1).
• Specialties with the highest continuity of preference between the GQ and the MSQ include Orthopaedic Surgery (52.1% in 2023), Neurological Surgery (41.5% in 2023), and Pediatrics (41.4% in 2023) (Table A1).
• On average, first-year residents in Obstetrics and Gynecology reported participating in the highest average number of volunteer experiences (10.0 in 2022) (Table B1).
• The number of active residents has increased by roughly 5,000 each year since the 2019 Report on Residents for a total of 153,883 in the 2023 Report on Residents (Table B3).
• Women continue to make up a slightly higher percentage of Psychiatry residents than men (51.4% in 2022) (Table B3). Among all specialties and subspecialties, women accounted for 48.3% of residents and fellows in 2022, compared to 47.3% in 2021 and 46.4% in 2020.
• The distribution of active MD residents by race/ethnicity varies across specialties. Overall, 47.8% of active U.S.-citizen MD residents in 2022 reported White, 21.3% reported Asian, 8.3% reported Hispanic, 6.3% reported Black or African American, 0.6% reported American Indian or Alaska Native, and 0.2% reported Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. Additionally, 19.2% of active MD residents were non-U.S. citizens in 2022 (Table B5).

Post-residency

• More than half (57.1%) of the individuals who completed residency training from 2013 through 2022 are practicing in the state where they did their residency training (Table C4). This retention rate is equal to the rate for individuals who completed residency training from 2012 to 2021 (57.1%).
• Men who completed residency training between 2013 and 2022 were less likely to practice in the state where they completed their residency training (54.6%) than women who completed training during the same timeframe (60.2%) (Table C5).
• California continues to have the highest physician retention rate, with 77.5% of individuals who completed residency training going on to practice in the state. The District of Columbia has the lowest retention rate, with 38.5% of individuals who completed residency training in the district leaving to practice in another part of the country (Table C6).
• Of those individuals who completed residency training from 2013 through 2022 and hold a full-time faculty appointment at a U.S. MD-granting school, 78.2% hold appointments at the assistant professor level (15.4% of the entire cohort of people who completed residency training) (Table C8).

Although the changes in this report from year to year are often marginal, the Report on Residents is one of many important resources for tracking changes within the largest specialties and subspecialties. Those interested in exploring data for a research project may request specific data by submitting the AAMC Data Request Form . Additional information is available in the ACGME Data Resource Book .

Providing Report Feedback

Comments on how to improve this report are welcome. Please share your thoughts by emailing [email protected] .

1. Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. ACGME Data Resource Book: Academic Year 2022-2023 . Chicago, IL: ACGME; 2023. acgme.org/globalassets/pfassets/publicationsbooks/2022-2023_acgme_databook_document.pdf .