Specialty Factors

In March 2022, the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) conducted its survey of directors of programs participating in the Main Residency Match ® with the primary purpose of characterizing the factors that Program Directors use to (1) select applicants to interview, and (2) rank applicants for the Main Residency Match. See results of the Program Director Survey for Dermatology below:

The Top 5 Most Important Dermatology Application Factors

Percentage of Programs Citing Each Factor

1. USMLE Step 1 score (94.1%)
2. MSPE/Dean’s Letter (94.1%)
3. Grades in required clerkship (88.2%)
4. Class ranking/quartile (76.5%)
5. Consistency of grades, Awards/honors in clinical clerkships (76.5%)

Average Importance Rating for Each Factor (scale of 1 to 5)

1. NRMP flag for match violation (5.0)
2. Professionalism and ethics (4.7)
3. Letters of recommendation in specialty (4.6)
4. Having overcome significant obstacles (4.6)
5. Personal statement (overall), Diversity characteristics, Perceived commitment to specialty (4.5)