There’s nothing quite like the excitement of Match Day, even when all the action is online. The roughly 100 graduates and graduates-to-be of the UMKC School of Medicine found out by email, just after 11 a.m. Friday, where they will spend the next stage of their medical careers.
Dean Mary Anne Jackson, M.D., addressed students, their families, faculty and friends with a video message. She congratulated the UMKC Class of 2021 for its hard work the past six years and especially during the past challenging year of COVID-19 shutdowns and other disruptions.
“This ceremony, which you know is a rite of passage for medical students across the country, is even more significant this year,” Jackson said. “I know the uncertainty of the pandemic has created disruptions for you on your medical school journey, from a pause in clinical rotations at the beginning, the elimination of away electives, the shortages of PPE that created changes in how we cared patients, and a move to virtual formats for didactic lectures, and everything from residency interviews to our most special ceremonies including this one.”
Jackson said the docents, faculty and staff were proud of the Class of 2021 and appreciated its members’ focus, flexibility and resilience.
“As you scatter across the country, I know you will continue to make us proud by demonstrating the knowledge, kindness, empathy, compassion and professionalism you’ve learned here,” Jackson said.
As they did a year ago, students had to celebrate individually, but many did so at home with friends and family.
2021 UMKC School of Medicine Match List
Half of the UMKC class will be headed to a primary care residency in internal medicine, family medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, or pediatrics. That exceeds the national average and is in line with the school’s mission to provide primary care for the Kansas City area, Missouri and the rest of the Midwest.
The students won assignments in 22 states, from California to New York and Washington state to Florida. Missouri had 26 of the placements, followed by 10 in Texas, eight in Florida, six each in Kansas and Illinois, five in California and four each in Arizona, Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, New York and Ohio.
And, as usual, some are headed to the top names in medicine, including three to Mayo and two to the Cleveland Clinic. Twenty-four will stay in the Kansas City area, most of them at UMKC and its affiliate hospitals.
Internal medicine was the top category with 32 placements, followed by 10 in family medicine, nine in various types of surgery, eight in pediatrics or medicine-pediatrics, seven in emergency medicine and six in psychiatry.
