Lerner College of Medicine Students’ Hard Work Pays Off on Match Day

On March 17, our Lerner College of Medicine (CCLCM) students experienced “Match Day,” the day medical students across the country learn where they are heading for residency. Match Day is a rite of passage that signifies the end of medical school training and the start of clinical training as a resident.

This Match Day, hundreds of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine (including the Lerner College of Medicine) students, family members and faculty gathered at the Health Education Campus where, at exactly noon, the students opened their envelopes containing their match information.

Stephanie Njemanze matched to Barnes Jewish Hospital, where she will train in neurology. “Barnes Jewish is the safety net hospital for the city of St. Louis,” she says. Having grown up in Mississippi where a large number of people are medically underserved, Stephanie feels strongly about training at an institution committed to providing high quality care to the local community.

Bernie Wu matched to his undergraduate alma mater, the University of California, Los Angeles, for anesthesiology. “UCLA has everything I looked for in a residency program including an outstanding clinical education as well as a location closer to my family,” he says, not to mention the yearlong sunshine and vibrant culture of Southern California. “I will always be grateful for the resources and mentorship offered by CCLCM, which played an instrumental role in my success as a medical student.”

The top residency programs chosen by our students this year are internal medicine, emergency medicine, anesthesiology and pediatrics. Of the program’s 27 graduating students, four are staying in Ohio for their residencies, two of whom will train at Cleveland Clinic. Of the 207 total Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine students who matched (which include the Lerner College Program, University Program and Medical Scientist Training Program), 9% are coming to Cleveland Clinic for training.

Matt Russell is one such graduate. He says he’s thrilled to be staying at Cleveland Clinic to train in ophthalmology alongside many of his medical school mentors, who are leaders in the field. “I am excited to become a competent clinician and microsurgeon while also continuing to grow my competency in clinical research,” Matt says.

“A dream come true” is how Surabhi Tewari describes matching to Brigham & Women’s and Massachusetts General Hospital to train in obstetrics and gynecology. “I owe it all to the love from my family and friends as well as the guidance and support from my mentors. I am thrilled to see how my classmates and I will take what we learned over the last five years at CCLCM and become the doctors we always hoped and dreamed to be.”

View the entire Match list.

The Lerner College of Medicine graduating class will be honored by their families, faculty, staff and fellow students in a celebration at the InterContinental Hotel on Saturday, May 20, at 4 p.m. The students will formally graduate on Sunday, May 21, from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, at which time they will receive their degree that reads “Medical Doctor with Special Qualifications in Biomedical Research.”

In addition, we celebrate the 21 students from the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine who matched to Cleveland Clinic. Seven of those students are part of the Heritage Transformative Care Continuum program and have trained at Cleveland Clinic as part of their educational experience. They automatically stay at Cleveland Clinic through residency.

In 2015, Cleveland Clinic and Heritage College established a Cleveland campus at South Pointe Hospital to train primary care physicians who will stay in Ohio following graduation.

Photo credit: Matt Kohlmann, Annie O’Neill