An internist is a personal physician who provides long-term, comprehensive care in the office and in the hospital, managing both common and complex illnesses of adolescents, adults and the elderly. Internists are trained in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, infections and diseases affecting the heart, blood, kidneys, joints and the digestive, respiratory and vascular systems. They are also trained in the essentials of primary care internal medicine, which incorporates an understanding of disease prevention, wellness, substance abuse, mental health and effective treatment of common problems of the eyes, ears, skin, nervous system and reproductive organs.
In March 2023, the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) conducted its survey of directors of programs participating in the Main Residency Match® to characterize the factors that Program Directors use to select applicants for interviews and rank applicants for the Main Residency Match. See results of the Program Director Survey for Internal Medicine below:
Drivers for Engaging in Holistic Review (For Those Indicating that they Performed Holistic Review) 2023:
Increase resident diversity: 78%
Identify promising applicants: 78%
Improve applicant program alignment: 69%
Support institution mission better: 64%
Other factors: 8%
Percentage of Programs Citing Discrete Factors and Mean Importance Rating¹ of Said Factors 2023:
Applicant personal attributes: 83% (4.6)
Applicant interests: 81% (4.1)
Applicant interpersonal skills, ethics, and professionalism: 79% (4.7)
Applicant personal experiences: 76% (3.9)
Applicant geographic preferences: 57% (4.1)
Other component or components: 15% (4.6)
¹Ratings on a scale from 1 (not at all important) to 5 (very important).
% of Programs Interviewing IMGs:
US IMG: Often 50%, Seldom 45%, Never 5%
Non-US IMG: Often 39%, Seldom 46%, Never 15%
% of Programs Ranking IMGs:
US IMG: Often 52%, Seldom 38%, Never 10%
Non-US IMG: Often 43%, Seldom 37%, Never 20%
% of Programs Using USMLE to Select IMG Applicants for Interview:
Step 1: Does not consider 2%, Requires pass only 30%, Prefers but does not require target score 25%, Requires target score 43%
Step 2 CK: Does not consider 3%, Requires pass only 19%, Prefers but does not require target score 29%, Requires target score 49%
Step 3: Does not consider 61%, Requires pass only 12%, Prefers but does not require target score 23%, Requires target score 4%
Fast Facts
Total Training
3 years
Average Residency Salary
$58,500
Average Physician Salary
$265,000
Average Physician Work Week
55 Hours
Peak Interview Months
November-January
Offers the following program training tracks
Preliminary (1 year) Categorical (Full training)
Key Organizations and Societies
Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine American Board of Internal Medicine American College of Osteopathic Internists American College of Physicians (ACP) Association of Professors of Medicine (APM) Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine (CDIM) Society of General Internal Medicine
Internal medicine is one of the most IMG-friendly specialties.
Match Statistics 2024
Main Residency Match
Categorical
Preliminary
Main Residency Match and Post-Match Stats
3,900
IMGs Matched
670
Number of Programs
9,750
Number of Positions
385
Post-Match SOAP Unfilled Positions
Post-Match SOAP
Program Track
Participating Programs
Filled Programs
Positions Available
Filled Positions
Categorical
72
65
370
360
Preliminary
59
48
145
120
Subspecialties
Adolescent Medicine
Adult Congenital Heart Disease
Advanced Heart Failure & Transplant Cardiology
Allergy and Immunology
Cardiovascular Disease
Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology
Critical Care Medicine
Endocrinology, Diabetes, & Metabolism
Gastroenterology
Geriatric Medicine
Hematology
Hematology & Oncology
Hospice & Palliative Medicine
Infectious Disease
Interventional Cardiology
Medical Oncology
Nephrology
Pulmonary Disease
Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine
Pediatric Endocrinology
Rheumatology
Sports Medicine
Sleep Medicine
Transplant Hepatology
Additional Info
For the 2025 residency match, the Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine (AAIM) has continued to maintain the existing guidelines for the Internal Medicine Structured Evaluative Letter (IM SEL). The template and recommendations have not changed significantly from the previous cycles, ensuring consistency and clarity in the evaluation process. The IM SEL remains an important tool for assessing both cognitive and non-cognitive attributes of applicants, complementing the Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE) and other letters of recommendation.
For the 2024-2025 residency application season, the AAIM has implemented a tiered program signaling system for Internal Medicine. Applicants have 15 signals: 3 gold for their most preferred programs and 12 silver for preferred programs. This system helps programs better gauge applicant interest and streamline the selection process (IM - AAIM)(Students & Residents)).
