Director’s message: Match Day an exciting showcase

As I have walked to work the past few days, I have noticed the green shoots of plants beginning to poke out through the earth – a reminder that spring is here and that a new round of flowers and other plants will soon be visible. A few weeks ago, the College of Medicine experienced its own rite of spring as we celebrated Match Day, where the class of 2022 learned where they would begin their specialty residency training this summer.

This year’s event took place at Baxter Arena and, although still influenced by pandemic restrictions, was an opportunity for each student to celebrate with friends and family the excitement of discovering where they would begin the next step of their pathway to becoming practicing physicians. The Match Day celebration is perhaps the graduation event that most allows each student to express their uniqueness through the sharing of a personal music selection and the photos by each student as they come onto the stage to announce to those in attendance where they have matched. Perhaps the pandemic has injected some element of nostalgia, as reflected by the fact that I recognized many of the songs that the students selected, some remarkably from around the time of my own Match Day program.

In early May, this same group of students will move through the hooding and commencement events to emerge as newly minted physicians ready to move forward in their growth – just as the plants currently emerging from the ground will be established and ready to embrace their development in the summer months ahead. This year’s graduating class has had many challenges. Most notably, the entirety of their clinical experiences in phases 2 and 3 of the curriculum, as well as the residency application process, occurred during the time and associated restrictions of the pandemic. Their resiliency has been truly remarkable to witness. I congratulate them on their success under very challenging circumstances.

Once again about 40% of our students will remain in Nebraska for residency, and 60% will be entering primary care specialties. Others will return to Nebraska upon completion of their residency/fellowship training. This reiterates the critical importance that the graduates of our medical school play in trying to meet the physician workforce needs of our state and emphasizes the impact that the faculty and staff of the college make toward the health and lives of our fellow citizens.

Congratulations again to the class of 2022, as well as the family, friends, faculty and staff who have supported them throughout their journey.  We look forward to May 6 and 7 to confer the MD degree upon them and send them out into the world to bloom.