Match Day 2024 Resource Hub: AAFP Celebrates the Newest Class of Family Medicine Residents
AAFP News Release: A Day for Celebration: Largest Class of Residents Find Their Home in Family Medicine
The 2024 National Resident Matching Program® Main Residency Match results announced today delivered the largest class of family medicine residents in history, with 4,595 medical students and graduates matching into family medicine residency programs. This year, family medicine offered 5,231 residency positions, 124 more than in 2023.
AAFP News Story: Another Record Match Day for Family Medicine
The AAFP welcomes the newest class of family medicine physicians as family medicine once again celebrates a record Match Day.
AAFP Analysis:
2024 Match® Results for Family Medicine
The American Academy of Family Physicians’ brief analysis of the family medicine results of the annual National Resident Matching Program Main Residency Match® provides a snapshot of a major input into the primary care workforce pipeline.
Hear from AAFP Leaders: Download interviews with AAFP SVP of Education, Inclusiveness, and Physician Well-Being, Dr. Margot Savoy, MD, MPH, AAFP VP of Education, and AAFP resident board member Janet Nwaukoni, DO. Media outlets are free to use these interviews for broadcast or publication with credit to the AAFP.
“On Match Day, I love welcoming our new medical students and graduates into the family medicine community. I look forward to working with these students and graduates, who are the future of family medicine. Together, we can foster a bright future for family medicine that reflects our country.”
-Dr. Karen Mitchell, AAFP Vice President of Education
“What I find is that family medicine students are the students that can never really pick a thing because everything excites them. They're excited about some aspect of everything that they're doing on their rotations. They see the connection to the community. They see that long term relationship with patients and how that is really the joy, and they find that family medicine is what's right for them.”
- Dr. Margot Savoy, AAFP Senior Vice President of Education, Inclusiveness and Well-being
Graph: Family Medicine in the NRMP Match 2014-2024
This year, more than 4,595 medical students and graduates matched into family medicine residency programs. Family medicine offered 5,231 residency positions,124 more than in 2023. The 2024 class of family medicine residents is the largest in the specialty’s history.
Graph: Family Medicine Residency Program Map
Family medicine residencies have continued to grow despite pandemic challenges and federal funding limitations. Programs are broadly distributed and train residents in more rural and underserved communities than any other specialty.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Match?
The Match process is a uniform system by which residency candidates and residency programs simultaneously “match” to fill first year and second-year post-graduate training positions accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). National Resident Matching Program® Main Residency Program instituted and maintains the Match system.
Unless they have specifically enrolled in the Military Match, which occurs in December, all graduating medical students and medical school graduates seeking a residency position should enroll in the Match.
What happens if a student does not match?
On Monday of Match week, students learn if—but not where—they matched. If a student didn't match, there's still an opportunity for them to match to a residency program through the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program® (SOAP®). SOAP matches are announced along with applicants who matched in the Main Residency Match on Friday.
The SOAP is a National Resident Matching Program-run system that matches unfilled residency positions with eligible unmatched applicants. During SOAP, applicants submit new applications to residencies, interview and then are offered positions in several rounds that each have two-hour windows for response. The entire process including three or more rounds of offers takes place Monday through Thursday of Match week.
Why should students consider matching into family medicine?
With the broadest scope of all specialties, family physicians have more office visits and practice in more settings than physicians in any other medical specialty. Family medicine is one of the most recruited specialties in the United States.
Family physicians provide and coordinate comprehensive health care for people of all ages, from newborns to seniors. They provide preventive care, address mental health and diagnose, treat and manage acute and chronic conditions.
Family physicians also build long-term relationships with patients and have a holistic view of their health. This makes them uniquely positioned to provide proactive, preventive care that prioritizes long-term patient wellness.
Where can I learn more?
The Match may be a complex process, but the AAFP has articles, tools, videos and events to support Match applicants every step of the way, as well as help journalists understand the Match process.
If you’re interested in speaking with a family physician, AAFP leader, student member who is matching this year, a residency program director, or resident who matched, email jhirschhorn@aafp.org to arrange a media interview.
Resources on the Match and Primary Care Workforce
The Health of US Primary Care: 2024 Scorecard Report
A new scorecard authored by the AAFP’s Robert Graham Center, with support from the Milbank Memorial Fund and The Physicians Foundation, highlights the importance of primary care and explores strategies to strengthen primary care and improve health outcomes.
The Match: Getting into a Residency Program
Learn more about the Match process. National Resident Matching Program® Main Residency instituted and maintains the Match system.
AAFP News Stories
Written by AAFP staff, these stories highlight updates, news and the work family physicians across the country are doing to address workforce issues
We Matched! Here’s How You Can, Too
AAFP News talked with candidates about what advice they would offer to those matching in 2024 and beyond.
Your Next Chapter Starts With Match Day Magic
Chase Mussard, M.D., former Resident member of the AAFP Board of Directors writes about the magic of Match Day.
ERAS Changes Aim for a ‘Good Fit’ for Students, Programs
On Feb. 1, the Association of American Medical Colleges announced the most significant changes to its Electronic Residency Application Service in decades.
ACGME Issues New Program Requirements for Family Medicine
The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education released new program requirements for family medicine residencies Sept. 30. The new requirements, which take effect Jul. 1, 2023, are the first major revisions for the specialty’s training programs in a decade.
Shaping Future of Family Medicine Training
As chair of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education’s Review Committee for Family Medicine, Grant Hoekzema, M.D., offered an update on the committee’s work each year during the AAFP’s Residency Leadership Summit.
Introducing the Best Practice Guide for Strategic Planning to Increase Student Choice of Family Medicine
The America Needs More Family Doctors collaborative on behalf of the Association of Departments of Family Medicine, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine works to increase student choice of family medicine.
Peer-reviewed Journal Publications
Reflections From Family Medicine Residents on Training During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Family medicine residents were uniquely situated to care for the American public throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of this report is to capture the diversity of experiences and contributions of family medicine residents across the U.S. to the care of the American public during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Easing the Transition Into Practice: A Checklist for New Physicians
Career transitions, particularly the transition from residency to your first attending position, can be filled with many emotions: relief that one chapter of your career is completed, excitement about starting a new position, and fear of the unknown.
Life After Residency: Exploring Practice Options in Family Medicine
Choosing a job after residency is an important milestone in one's medical career and can also be an overwhelming decision. Practice patterns of new family medicine residency graduates have changed over the years, with fewer providing inpatient care.
Developing Your Professional Career Plan
Whether you are finishing your residency soon or feeling the urge to move beyond your current position, career opportunities abound for primary care doctors.
Annals of Family Medicine:
The Future of Family Medicine Residency Education: The Specialty Has Spoken
An update from representatives of the specialty of Family Medicine who came together at the fourth Starfield Summit to provide input for the development of the next version of ACGME Program Requirements for Graduate Medical Education in Family Medicine, expected to be implemented in 2022.
Trends in the Contribution of U.S. Medical Schools to the Family Medicine Workforce
Multiple states have identified a substantial primary care workforce shortage. This study explores how medical schools can foster interest and growth in family medicine.