Match Day is the culmination of a medical student’s education: the day all graduating seniors and non-traditional applicants find out where they will spend the next three to seven years to train in a desired specialty. I fell in love with obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) as it was the perfect way to combine my passion for women’s health with medicine and surgery. I also liked that the patients were relatively healthy and willing to heed medical advice for the betterment of their families. I applied broadly across the U.S. — 45 programs to be exact — and received a total of 30 interview offers. A few months and 13 interviews later, I anxiously awaited the results. On Monday of Match week, I was rotating in the pediatric ICU and stepped away from rounds to open my email, ecstatic to receive the confirmation that I would soon be an OB/GYN in training:
“We are sorry you did not match to any position.”
I stared at the words on my iPhone screen until they became jumbled letters. This has to be a mistake. I felt the tears well up as I immediately ran to an unoccupied stairwell to call my mother. She was equally as shocked and devastated.
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