At the Louis A. Simpson and Kimberly K. Querrey Biomedical Research Center on Northwestern’s Chicago campus, fourth-year Feinberg students excitedly tore open envelopes to reveal their residency matches at this year’s Match Day celebration on March 15. 

“This day is so exciting not only to me but also for my classmates because it’s the culmination of all this hard work, and it’s exciting to see not only where I’m going, but to see where everyone else is going and have this joint celebration together,” said Maggie Danziger, who matched into Orthopaedic Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. 

Feinberg students, their families and friends attended this year’s Match Day celebration. Match Day, an annual tradition held on the third Friday in March, is when fourth-year medical students across the U.S. learn where they will complete their residency training for the next three to seven years.  

“Let’s take in this moment surrounded by your families, your friends, your significant others and your classmates to celebrate all the hard work you’ve done. I’m so proud of all of you,” said Eli Zimmerman, MD, associate dean for Student Affairs and associate professor in the Ken and Ruth Davee Department of Neurology’s Division of Stroke and Vascular Neurology. 

Marianne Green, MD, the Raymond H. Curry, MD, Professor of Medical Education and vice dean for Education, addressed students and their families before the envelopes were opened and matches were revealed.  

“There are some hard years ahead for you in your training in your residency, but I know that each and every one of you has got this,” Green said. “Given that you’ve made it through the hardest part of training yet in medical school, I know each and every one of you will succeed.”  

From this year’s class, 135 students matched in 23 different ACGME-certified residency specialties, with 68 percent of Feinberg’s matching students heading to programs affiliated with a top 25 U.S. medical school. 

“Match Day is one of those traditions you think about when going into medicine, and today just feels unreal — it’s where we get to figure out where all our hard work brought us,” said Evan Edwards, who matched into Otorhinolaryngology (ENT) at The Ohio State University. 

This year, the most popular specialties students matched into included internal medicine, pediatrics, anesthesiology, orthopaedic surgery, ophthalmology and psychiatry. 

“It’s a really interesting feeling to be at this point in my medical training because today feels just as much an end as it does a beginning. It’s a reflection of all the years of work I’ve had at Feinberg and also a reflection of how much more there is to learn,” said Trisha Kaundinya, who matched into Internal Medicine/Dermatology at Mass General Brigham at Harvard University. 

Roger Smith, who matched into Internal Medicine at the McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University, has been working towards his medical degree and doctorate through Feinberg’s Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) and said he feels both excited and well prepared for his transition into the next phase of his career in the Department of Medicine‘s Physician-Scientist Training Program. 

“Northwestern has made me feel very prepared for residency, from the classroom-based learning in the first couple years through all the clinical training phases, I’ve just felt really supported within that training environment,” Smith said. 

Dinushi Kulasekere, who matched into General Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine, thanked Feinberg faculty members for supporting her throughout her medical school journey and for inspiring her to become a caring healthcare provider.  

“This has been an amazing day, and I want to thank Feinberg for everything they’ve done for us and for preparing us so well and for giving me the opportunity to fulfill my dreams,” Kulasekere said.  

A complete list of the 2024 match results for each specialty can be found here.