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September 2025 Illuminator

Shining a Light on Match News that Matters

This issue of the Illuminator includes:

2026 Main Residency Match® Registration for Medical Schools and Applicants Opens on September 15

The 2026 Main Residency Match registration for medical schools and applicants will begin on Monday, September 15, at 12 p.m. ET. Once registration begins, medical school officials and administrators will receive an instructional email with your username (if you are a returning user to the Registration, Ranking, and Results® (R3®) system) or a token (if you are a new user to the R3 system).

Here are a few reminders for the 2026 Main Residency Match:

  • All Match participants must electronically sign the updated Match Participation Agreement as part of the registration process. The Agreements are designed to ensure a fair and equitable matching process by establishing rules all participants must follow.
  • Review the Codes of Conduct, which offer guidance on ways to ensure honest, transparent actions that promote equity and well-being.
  • There is a comprehensive support section on the website to help participants through the Match process, which includes FAQs, support guides, and checklists.
  • NRMP’s YouTube channel has a variety of advising and instructional video tutorials along with user-type specific playlists for institutions, programs, medical schools, and applicants. 

Introduction to the 2026 Main Residency Match for Applicants Webinar

The NRMP will be releasing an Introduction to the 2026 Main Residency Match for Applicants webinar on Thursday, September 4.

The recorded webinar will provide an overview of Match processes and policies including applicant eligibility, multiple application services, NRMP’s program directory, policy information, and support resources to help applicants through the Match process. The recording and presentation slides will be available on the website on September 4 to provide your applicants.

Introduction to the 2026 Main Residency Match for Medical Schools Webinar

The NRMP hosted an Introduction to the 2026 Main Residency Match for Medical Schools webinar on Tuesday, September 9. NRMP Chief of Match Operations, Jeanette Calli, and Director of Policy and Compliance, Joy Gaabucayan, hosted a webinar designed to assist medical school staff in the Main Residency Match. The webinar covers introductory information about the Match, how to manage your students and graduates in the R3 system, Match fees, relevant policies, and support resources.

Register for the Voluntary Rank Order List (ROL) Lock Pilot

The deadline for Internal Medicine and Vascular Surgery programs to sign up is September 5

Registration is open in the R3 system for Internal Medicine, Pediatrics and Vascular Surgery residency programs to participate in the Voluntary ROL Lock Pilot.

Each specialty has a deadline for programs to declare their intent to participate in the pilot:

  • Friday, September 5 for Internal Medicine and Vascular Surgery
  • Friday, October 3 for Pediatrics

New! FAQs are now available on the Voluntary Program ROL Lock Pilot page to help guide medical schools in what applicants should know about the pilot. This initiative will make it possible for a participating program to voluntarily lock its Rank Order List (ROL) prior to the certification deadline and then provide applicants with the opportunity after interviewing to attend—or not—post-interview visits. The purpose is to give applicants additional information to help them build their own ROLs, without any impact on how they are ranked by programs.

Applicants will be able to search R3 in Fall 2025 to see which programs signed up for the pilot and in February 2026 to see which programs locked their ROLs. We encourage everyone to review the FAQs, particularly students interested in Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, and Vascular Surgery.

Also available: A recorded Q&A session with NRMP staff and Internal Medicine program directors and program staff.

Program directors can sign up at the program track level by logging into the R3 system, selecting Program Details in R3, and clicking the Voluntary ROL Lock participation section.

Questions? Contact pilot@nrmp.org. 

Join Us October 11 – 12 in Washington, DC, for the 2025 NRMP Conference!

We’re just one month away from the 2025 Transition to Residency Conference! Space is limited and hotel rooms are filling quickly, so don’t wait, secure your spot today!

Why attend the NRMP Stakeholder Conference?

  • Gain fresh insights from an inspiring lineup of speakers addressing how the UME-GME community can work together to build a confident physician workforce capable of meeting the nation’s health needs.
  • Explore all that Washington, DC has to offer and connect with the medical education community in the heart of the nation’s capital.
  • Give back by joining NRMP and United Way National Capital Area (NCA) in a philanthropy event to benefit local children in community schools, after-school programs, and shelters. 
  • Stay informed on NRMP initiatives and the role The Match plays in the transition to residency.
  • Network meaningfully with program directors, learners, faculty, and staff across the UME-GME community to spark collaboration, new ideas, and robust conversations.

The final day to book within the NRMP hotel block is September 17. We hope you will join us!

Call for Nominations NRMP® Board of Directors

The NRMP Board of Directors is seeking nominations for the following seats:

  • One Senior Director
  • One Resident Physician Director
  • Two Medical Student Directors
    • One must be an osteopathic medical student

The Board of Directors meets three times a year, usually in January, May, and October. Additional day-long meetings and conference calls are required for Board committee work.

The NRMP Board of Directors works to understand and respond to issues central to The Match and to ensure processes are always responsive to the needs of the GME community. The NRMP Board continues to seek out and elect individuals who can bring unique experiences and perspectives to the issues facing the organization and who represent constituencies of the academic medical community.

Please review the Board Nominations page for information about qualifications, links to online applications, and directions for submitting nominee packets. Nominations are due by Friday, October 31, 2025.

Watch and Share – Unique Paths to Residency and Becoming a Physician Video

NRMP is highlighting a series of videos to assist applicants in navigating the application, interview, and matching process.

Our Unique Paths to Residency video highlights applicants and their unique journeys into medicine. Be inspired as you hear their stories as they become physicians!

Key takeaway from the video? There are many diverse paths to residency and becoming a physician – from first generation to non-traditional students. Many applicants have overcome challenges and brought rich, varied experiences to their medical training.

Share the video with your 2026 Match applicants and stay tuned as we highlight additional videos throughout the Match season! 

Policy Corner: NRMP’s Commitment to Data Usage and Privacy

As we prepare for the launch of another successful Match cycle, we wanted to call out our commitment to protecting and preserving the data and information entrusted to us by all Match participants as well as the information collected about Match participants from other organizations. Section 14.0 of the Match Participation Agreement outlines the NRMP’s use of Match information.

Some highlights to consider:

  • The NRMP requests, obtains, transmits, and receives identifying information about Match participants from other medical education organizations involved in the transition to residency primarily for research purposes or to ensure successful, accurate execution of a Match.
  • Joint research conducted by the NRMP that may examine individual ranking and outcomes data is done sparingly and only under strict, binding terms of a confidential data sharing agreement. At no time does the NRMP allow identifiable ranking and/or Match outcomes information to be disclosed in publications or presentations.
  • NRMP shares data with independent third-party researchers whose requests for said data comply with NRMP policy, but only in anonymized or aggregated form.
  • Match information contained in the NRMP’s Registration, Ranking, and Results (R3) system cannot be copied, distributed, posted or made publicly available. Unauthorized disclosure of information contained in the R3 system is prohibited under Match policy.

The NRMP is committed to handling your data with integrity, discretion, and care and to ensuring all parties to a Match recognize the confidentiality of information submitted to and stored in the R3 system.

Please visit NRMP’s Policies page to review the Match Participation Agreements. If you have questions, please reach out to policy@nrmp.org. We look forward to supporting you through the 2026 matching process.

Upcoming Deadlines

Colon & Rectal Surgery, Forensic Psychiatry, Medical Genetics, Spinal Cord Injury Medicine

  • September 3, 12 p.m. ET: Ranking Opens

Obstetrics & Gynecology, Pain Medicine

  • September 3, 11:59 p.m. ET: Quota Change Deadline

Rehabilitation Medicine

  • September 17, 12 p.m. ET: Match Opens

Obstetrics & Gynecology, Pain Medicine

  • September 17, 9 p.m. ET: Rank Order List Certification Deadline

Colon & Rectal Surgery, Forensic Psychiatry, Medical Genetics, Spinal Cord Injury Medicine

  • September 17, 11:59 p.m. ET: Quota Change Deadline

Emergency Medicine

  • September 24, 12 p.m. ET: Ranking Opens

Careers

NRMP is growing to meet the needs of the community. We currently have one position open:

  • Senior Business Intelligence Analyst

For more information, please visit our Careers page. NRMP is an equal opportunity employer.