Medical students surprised with residency locations during USC’s “Match Day”
COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — At exactly 12 o’clock on Friday, medical students across the country found out what city they’ll be going to for their residencies in what’s known as “Match Day.”
And the same is true for future doctors right here at the University of South Carolina, as they gathered at Central Energy on Gregg Street for a celebration that’s years in the making.
To get to this countdown required years of hard work and sleepless nights.
Right at noon, students were allowed to open their individual boxes to see where they’ll be heading after they receive the title of doctor this coming May.
ABC Columbia’s Lee Williams caught up with Dr. Eric Williams, Associate Dean of Student Affairs for USC’s School of Medicine before the event began.
“And so do you think they’re feeling more nervous or excited?” asked Williams.
“Yes! Haha,” replied Dr. Williams, “So I’d say some of both. There’s certainly excitement about finding out where they’re going to go but also some nervousness because many of them ranked several places, so they could be in several places in the country and have no idea where they’re going to be moving until they open that envelope.”
Future Doctor Andrew Westfall says he got his first choice.
“Oh my word, I am so excited. I’ve been hoping to match into family medicine for a long time, and I really wanted to match at McLeod Florence, and I got my top choice. Florence is my home and I get to be with my family, so I’m really excited,” Westfall says.
He ventured into medicine after his grandmother was left partially paralyzed from brain surgery, and his mother had a heart attack when he was eleven.
“And so I wanted to be able to help people that were in those kind of circumstances,” he says.
Future Doctor Mark Karavan also got his first choice, and is headed to Duke to specialize in orthopedic surgery.
He says the medical field runs in the family.
“My parents were both in medicine. My dad’s a doctor; my mom’s a nurse, and they were huge role models for me growing up,” says Karavan.
And how about the school experience?
“I’m just so grateful for the University of South Carolina, both undergrad and med school — it was the best eight years of my life,” he says.
Dr. Williams believes he and the rest of the faculty couldn’t be happier for all of their students, saying, “So we’re just excited for them, we’re happy for them. It’s just great to watch them come in on day one and leave a doctor. So I couldn’t be more proud and more happy for every single one of them.”
