The results are in! 🎉 After Match Day 2025 on Friday, March 21st, the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) has released this year’s data by specialty, degree, and more. This data offers a glimpse into the evolving landscape of medical education and residency recruitment, and is especially helpful for future residency applicants when considering the trends in their preferred specialty!
We took a look at the NRMP report so you don’t have to! In this post, we’ll analyze key trends from this year’s Match, explore the factors influencing this year’s results, and provide actionable takeaways for future applicants.
What is Match Day?
Match Day is the pivotal moment when years of medical school training culminate in the next phase of your career: residency. It determines where you’ll train and take the next step toward becoming an attending physician.
The cycle begins in September when applicants submit their residency applications. Interviews then take place throughout the late fall and winter. In early spring, applicants and programs submit rank lists, and finally in March, Match Day reveals whether and where they’ve matched into residency.
Why This Data Matters
Every year, the Match brings unexpected shifts. Match data fluctuates annually due to evolving applicant and program preferences, workforce needs, and changes in medical education policies. Factors such as application volume, program expansion, and new specialty trends can all influence the Match landscape.
…to the Future of Medicine
Match data provides insights into the future of the physician workforce, including specialty shortages, competitiveness shifts, and broader trends in medical education. For those interested in healthcare policy and workforce planning, this data is invaluable.
…to Residency Applicants
For those preparing to apply, this data helps answer critical questions:
- How competitive is my specialty of choice?
- Should I consider additional specialties as backups or apply to more programs?
- What can I do to strengthen my application based on this year’s trends?
…to Residency Programs
Programs use this data to refine their selection process, adjust interview strategies, and ensure they’re attracting the best candidates. Understanding applicant behavior can also help programs improve their recruitment efforts.
Lessons from Match Day 2025
This year’s Match data highlights the following for future applicants:
- Understanding specialty competitiveness can help applicants make informed decisions about which programs to target.
- Interviews (virtual or in-person) play a significant role in getting a spot, so applicants should refine their interview skills.
- The number of applications submitted should be strategic rather than excessive, focusing on quality over quantity, especially as signaling and geographic preferences come into play.
Key Statistics and Trends from Match Day 2025
Overall Match Rates
Match rates serve as a fundamental indicator of applicant competitiveness across different categories. Overall, there were more than 47,000 certified applicants, which was a 5.3% increase from 2024. They vied for 43,237 positions, a 4.2% increase from the previous year. 94.1% of those PGY-1 positions were filled.
This year’s data from NRMP highlights the following trends:
- US MD seniors had a 93.5% match rate, which was unchanged from the previous year.
- US DO seniors had a 92.6 % match rate, a 0.3% increase from the previous year.
- US citizen IMGs* had a 67.8% match rate, a 0.8% increase from previous year.
- Non US citizen IMGs had a 58% match rate, a 0.5% decrease from previous year.
*(IMG = international medical graduate)
Specialty Trends
The specialties you’d expect remain highly competitive year after year, while others fluctuate based on various factors.
The most competitive specialties in 2025 included dermatology, interventional radiology, and orthopedic and plastic surgery.
OB/GYN
There’s been much discussion about women’s health and reproductive health since the 2023 US Supreme Court ruling which overturned Roe v. Wade. Of note and perhaps surprisingly, OB/GYN remained highly competitive with over 99% of spots filled for the 2025 cycle. Among the 1,604 OB/GYN positions offered, only 10 were unfilled, with approximately 90% of matching applicants coming from US programs (70% US MD and 20% US DO).
Emergency Medicine
Match and emergency medicine fill rates were as high as ever, with more than 95% filled, which is way up from an ~80% match rate in 2023.
This means fill rates for emergency medicine slots have rebounded toward pre-pandemic levels. This year, emergency medicine had a 97.9% fill rate with 3,003 applicants matching into the specialty.
Primary Care
With the nation’s ongoing physician shortage, especially in primary care, residency slots in family medicine, internal medicine, internal medicine-pediatrics, and pediatrics expanded. There were 20,300 categorical positions available—an increase of 877 from last year and a record high.
Here’s the breakdown:
- Internal Medicine: Added 679 more positions than last year with a fill rate of 96.8%.
- Pediatrics: Added 54 slots with a fill rate of 95.3%.
- Family Medicine: Added 144 openings with a fill rate of 85%.
In the 2025 cycle, there was also a decreased number of unmatched applicants. This is likely because of the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP). This cycle had 2,521 SOAP positions available to help unmatched applicants find a home.
IMG Performance
It goes without saying that the landscape of US medical training would be very different without IMGs. They help fill residency positions and play a crucial role in addressing US workforce shortages, particularly in underserved communities and essential medical specialties, namely primary care. In 2025, IMGs will fill approximately 44.6% of matched first-year positions in internal medicine.
Overall for 2025, approximately 9,700 IMGs matched into PGY-1 positions in the US, which is a slight increase from the prior year. About one-third are US citizens while the remaining two-thirds are noncitizens. The match rates for both US and foreign IMGs had little variance compared to previous years.
IMGs have continued to match best into primary care fields such as internal medicine, pediatrics, and family medicine, as well as subspecialties such as geriatrics and neurology. They continue to have some struggles matching into competitive specialties such as dermatology and the surgical subspecialties (i.e.,orthopedics, plastics, and neurosurgery).
Factors Influencing Match Day 2025 Results
Impact of Virtual Interviews & Program Preferences
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual interviews have become a standard practice. The 2025 Match continued this trend, but some programs (including many surgical subspecialties) returned to in-person residency interviews.
The impact virtual interviewing had during the last cycle is unclear. Did virtual interviews impact applicants’ ability to make strong impressions, or turn applicants away from certain programs? Perhaps.
ERAS & Application Volume
As we noted at the beginning, more people overall are applying for residency. The trend of increasing application numbers has been a persistent challenge for programs. They have attempted to adapt to increasing application volumes in several ways, including:
1. Stricter Application Screening
Many programs use filters such as USMLE/COMLEX scores, medical school accreditation, visa status, geographic preference, and signaling to efficiently review applications.
2. Preference Signaling & Holistic Review
Some specialties now use program signaling, allowing applicants to indicate strong interest in specific programs. Programs also emphasize holistic review, and consider leadership, experiences, and letters of recommendation alongside board scores.
3. Virtual Interviewing
As noted, virtual interviews remain common. They allow programs to interview more candidates while reducing costs and scheduling constraints.
4. Program Expansion
In response to workforce needs, some programs have increased residency spots, particularly in primary care and underserved specialties.
Final Thoughts
The 2025 Match provides invaluable data for future applicants and residency programs alike. As the landscape of medical education continues to evolve, staying informed on trends is critical for making data-driven decisions.
For those preparing for the 2026 Match, now is the time to reflect on this data and refine your application strategy.
Good luck with your residency search, and be sure to check out our residency consulting services to get expert advice and maximize your chance of success!
