The Match
Ophthalmology Match Day takes place in mid-January. Unfortunately, it gets very little hype as we are the only specialty that matches on that day. I was surprised to find out that most applicants actually end up having to attend their scheduled clerkships as usual.
Applicants can expect an email the morning prior to Match Day stating whether they matched, but not giving any information about specific programs. In 2013, this email was sent at exactly 6:00 am CST. Program directors are typically notified of who matched at their program one hour later and are free to notify these people at any time afterward. This means you may get a call or email as early as 7:00 am CST from your future program director. Match results are then posted on the SF Match website the following morning on the official Ophthalmology Match Day.
Matching into ophthalmology lets a huge weight off your shoulders, but unfortunately, you will have to wait for the main Match Day in March to find out where you are going for your intern year (unless you were fortunate enough to match at a program with an integrated internship). Even so, the hard part is over and you can enjoy the rest of your fourth year without worrying about honoring every class.
I’d like to give a special thanks to Erin Boese, MD for her contributions. The application and interview process is perpetually changing. Please contact Dr. Tom Oetting with any comments, questions, or corrections at thomas-oetting@uiowa.edu
