Phase 4 of Medical School

Game On:

Time to apply to residency and show all of the hard work you’ve accomplished over the years. Remember that your AD, specialty mentors, Drs. Nobay and Newton are here during every step of the process.

Key Dates:

• ■ June 4, 2025: ERAS 2026 Opens
• ■ September 3, 2025: Residency applicants may being submitting MyERAS to programs
• ■ September 15, 2025: Registration opens for the NRMP 2026 Match Cycle
• ■ September 24, 2025: Residency programs begin reviewing MyERAS applications, MSPEs, and supplemental ERAS application data at 9am ET
• ■ February 2, 2026: Rank order list entry opens
• ■ March 4, 2026: Rank order list deadline (9pm ET)
• ■ March 16, 2026: Match week begins! Get notified of match status
• ■ March 20, 2026: Match Day!

Common Resources:

• ■  CiM
• ■ Residency Explorer Tool
• ■ Program Director Survey Report
• ■ Charting Outcomes in the Match for U.S. Allopathic Seniors
• ■ 2022 AAMC Report on Residents

Resources (application specific):

• ■ ERAS
• ■ Supplemental Application
• ■ NRMP
• ■ Match Calendars
• ■ USMLE Step 2 CK

Specifics:

• ■ Phase 4 Planning
  • ■ Identify when to take USMLE Step 2 CK (some will want their score prior to submitting MyERAS)
  • ■ Create a plan for Phase 4 that works on strengthening your clinical practice
  • ■ Meet with your AD to discuss Phase 4 electives
  • ■ Review your Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE)
• ■ Year 4 Specialty Specific Competencies
• ■ Anesthesiology Specific Competencies
• ■ Emergency Medicine Specific Competencies
• ■ Family Medicine Specific Competencies
• ■ General Surgery Specific Competencies
• ■ Internal Medicine Specific Competencies
• ■ Neurology Specific Competencies
• ■ OBGYN Specific Competencies
• ■ Orthopedics Surgery Specific Competencies
• ■ Otolaryngology Specific Competencies
• ■ Pediatrics Specific Competencies
• ■ Psychiatry Specific Competencies
• ■ Urology Specific Competencies
• ■ Residency Application Planning
  • ■ Application Material
  • ■ Ensure Letter writers have Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) letter links and ensure deadlines with friendly reminders
  • ■ Professional portrait for ERAS application
  • ■ Finalize personal statement, CV, MSPE
• ■ Preparing for Interview Season
  • ■ Invites are specialty specific and may not come in immediately
  • ■ Schedule mock interviews
  • ■ Practice interview responses
    • ■ Why this specialty? (Make your answer genuine)
    • ■ Tell me about yourself (Make sure to accentuate your strengths)
    • ■ Know your weaknesses but talk about how you have worked on them during medical school (listened to feedback)
    • ■ Be aware of your nonverbal cues
    • ■ 2020 Surprising Residency Interview Questions
    • ■ 2021 Surprising Residency Interview Questions
    • ■ 2022 Surprising Residency Interview Questions
    • ■ 2024 Surprising Residency Interview Questions
    • ■ 2025 Surprising Residency Interview Questions
• ■ Preparing for Match
  • ■ Finalize rank list Consult with your specialty mentors and Advisory Dean as needed.
  • ■ Residency Explorer is a helpful tool that lets you explore and compare residency programs and compare your profile (your experiences, standardized exam scores and accomplishments) to 2014-2018 applicants
  • ■ URMatched is an internal database of URSMD's Match data from previous years. Searches can be filtered by specialty, location, or program and you will see individuals who matched into these categories throughout the years. You must be connected to the URMC network to access the database.
  • ■ How competitive is the Match?