About Medical Specialties Matching Program (MSMP)

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The Medical Specialties Matching Program (MSMP) includes the following subspecialties:

• Cardiovascular Disease specialists treat patients with acute and chronic cardiovascular conditions including chronic coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, arrhythmia, acute myocardial infarction, and other congenital heart disease.

  Training consists of a three-year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency. One year is devoted to research.

• Endocrinology is the specialty of internal medicine that deals with the hormonal regulation of normal physiology including the pituitary, thyroid, adrenal, pancreas, ovaries/testes and their target tissues. Dysregulation of the physiologic hormone profiles result in systemic illnesses with significant ramifications. In addition, the practice of endocrinology includes the management of neoplasia occurring in endocrine tissues.
  
  Training consists of either a two-year clinical curriculum or a three-year combined clinical and research fellowship following completion of an internal medical residency.

• Gastroenterologists are specialists with advanced training who research, diagnose and treat disorders of the gastrointestinal tract and liver.

  Training consists of a three-year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency.

• Hematology is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disorders affecting the blood, bone marrow, and the immunologic, hemostatic and vascular systems.

  Training consists of a two-year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency.

• Hematology/Medical Oncology is the specialty of internal medicine that deals with 1) the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disorders affecting the blood, bone marrow, immunologic, and hemostatic/vascular systems, and 2) all forms of cancer and its therapy.

  Training consists of a three-year fellowship following completion of an internal medical residency.

• Infectious Disease specialists diagnose and treat contagious diseases. At the onset of the antibiotic era, the specialty was thought to be on the edge of extinction. It is now making a large comeback due to the great diversity of drug-resistant bacteria and the AIDS epidemic. Disease specialists also practice general internal medicine.

  Training consists of a two-year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency.

• Medical Oncology is the specialty of internal medicine that deals with the diagnosis and, more specifically, the management of the treatment of cancer. An oncologist may have a special interest in certain types of cancer or certain therapies such as biological therapy, but has the training, experience, and skills for finding out the latest information on all forms of cancer and all types of therapy.

  Training consists of a two-year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency.

• Nephrology is the specialty of internal medicine that deals with disorders of the kidney, including those that affect kidney function, kidney stone formation, fluid and electrolyte homeostasis, and regulation of blood pressure.
  
  Training consists of a two-year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency. Additional years for research are available.

• Pulmonary Disease specialists treat patients with diseases of the lungs in both the inpatient and outpatient setting.

  Training consists of a two-or-three year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency.

• Rheumatologists are internists whom are qualified by additional training and experience in the diagnosis and treatment of arthritis and other diseases of the joints, muscles and bones. Many rheumatologists conduct research to determine the cause and better treatments for these disabling and sometimes fatal diseases.
  
  Training consists of a two-year fellowship following completion of an internal medicine residency.

The National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) is pleased to welcome the Endocrinology and Nephrology program directors for the 2009 appointments.

The following sponsoring organizations for MSMP have requested the NRMP conduct a match program:

• Training Directors Committee-American College of Cardiology
• Association of Program Directors in Endocrinology / Diabetes / Metabolism
• The American Gastroenterological Association
• American College of Gastroenterology
• American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases
• American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy
• American Society of Hematology
• American Society of Clinical Oncology and the American Society of Hematology
• American Society of Clinical Oncology
• Infectious Diseases Society of America
• American Society of Nephrology
• Association of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Program Directors
• American College of Rheumatology

Please refer to the Schedule of Dates for the specific MSMP Match dates.

Specialty Matches conducted by the NRMP are not centralized applications services. Candidates apply directly to the residency program that interests them.

A directory of programs participating in the last match is available in Participating Programs in Previous Match. Once a match begins, registered participants have access to a real-time directory of registered programs located in the Match Site. Program Directors also will have access to a real-time listing of applicants registered for the current match. Another source of information is the Graduate Medical Education Directory published by the American Medical Association. This publication includes the names and addresses of all accredited programs regardless of whether the program participates in the Medical Specialties Matching Program.

For more information and statistics on these fellowships, log on to the American Medical Association's interactive online program called Fellowship and Residency Electronic Interactive Database Access (FREIDA).

Before registering, please review the SMS Match Participation Agreement. By registering with the match and submitting a certified rank order list (ROL), applicants and programs agree to abide by the outcome of the match. Failure to do so is a breach of the Agreement and violators may be subject to penalties under the NRMP's Violations Policy. Both applicants and programs must follow the cardinal rule that neither must ask the other to make a commitment before the submission of ROLs. It is to be expected that one may express a high level of interest in the other; however, it is not acceptable for one to ask the other how one will be ranked.

Any verbal or written contract between an applicant and a program prior to the submission of the ROL is a material violation of the SMS Match Participation Agreement, and violators may be subject to penalties under the NRMP's Violations Policy. The final preference of program directors and applicants as reflected on the submitted ROLs will determine the offering of positions and the placement of applicants.

The Application Process

Candidates must apply to the programs of their choice using the method accepted by the program. All subspecialties participating in the Medical Specialties Matching Program for the 2009 appointment year will participate in the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). ERAS, a service developed by the AAMC, transmits application materials via the Internet to programs in residency and selected fellowship specialties. A few programs may use their own application for Residency. Do not send any program applications for Residency to the NRMP.

Program directors review candidates' credentials and, if interested, invite them for interviews. Applicants also are responsible for ensuring that they meet all program prerequisites and institutional policies regarding eligibility for appointment to a fellowship position prior to ranking a program through the NRMP.

Applicants who have not completed prerequisite training in an accredited ACGME program in the U.S., or a similar program in Canada accredited by the Royal Colleges of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, must be certified by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG).

Updated 12/09/2008