To help guide and prepare students through the process of deciding on a career specialty and applying for residency, the staff at the Pritzker School of Medicine provides students with a comprehensive career development program.
Career Advising
Each fourth-year medical student is assigned to a career advisor who provides one-on-one career mentoring.
MSPE Director
The MSPE Director, H. Barrett Fromme, MD, MHPE, is responsible for meeting with all fourth-year students, overseeing the construction of each student’s Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE), and reviewing the MSPE with each student.
Residency Advising Meetings
Class meetings are held throughout the fourth year to answer questions about ERAS and issues of residency.
Away Rotations
Are you entering a specialty where an away rotation is recommended? Learn more about away rotations.
The AAMC has recommended residency programs use virtual interviews going forward in order to reduce the cost of interviewing for applicants and increase equity, align with residency applicant preferences for virtual interviews, and maintain a commitment to reducing environmental impact. The AAMC also acknowledges that not all programs will follow this recommendation and some may have important reasons for using a hybrid or in-person interview model.
*Updates will be added as they become available*
Dermatology (5/22/23)
The AAMC has implemented a few important changes or the 2023-2024 ERAS season, including elimination of a separate Supplemental ERAS Application, new limitations on the number of activities that may be listed, and new activity categories. Refer to the 2023-2024 Residency Process Book for further guidance on these changes.
Integration of of Supplemental Application into MyERAS
Application components previously included in the separate Supplemental ERAS Application will be integrated into the primary MyERAS application. This includes geographic preference signals, program signals, and additional space to describe activities.
Geographic Preference Signals - Applicants will be able to indicate up to three preferred geographic divisions or indicate no preference. Applicants can also indicate a preference or lack of preference for setting (urban, suburban, rural).
Program Signals - Applicants in 20 specialties will be able to send program signals as a way of expressing genuine interest in programs, giving the participating programs a data point to consider when determining interview invitations. Program signals are not intended for use by programs in determining Rank Order Lists after interview season. The number of signals allotted varies by specialty. Refer to the Residency Process Book for strategic guidance on Program Signals and discuss yours with your Career Advisor.
- Program Signaling overview
- Participating specialties and number of signals by specialty
- Frequently asked questions
Activities - Applicants will be able to categorize three of their listed activities as "Most Meaningful," which allows additional space for narrative description of the activities. Applicants may also separately describe an Impactful Experience to highlight challenges or hardships they have faced on their journey to residency.
Limitations on Activities
Beginning with the 2023-2024 ERAS cycle, applicants will be limited to listing 10 total activities. This includes activities such as research experience, community service, institutional service, work experience, teaching experience, leadership, and professional organizations. For each activity, applicants will describe their role/responsibilities, frequency of participation, and outcomes/accomplishments. Additionally, applicants will be able to designate three of these 10 activities as "Most Meaningful," which will give the applicant extra space to describe why the experience was meaningful and what they gained from it.
New Activity Categories
Previously, applicants could categorize listed activities in one of three categories. Applicants will now have nine options to choose from when categorizing their activities and should be thoughtful in which categories they select, as programs will be able to filter their view of applicants in ERAS based on these categories.
All deadlines and information may be subject to change. The University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine Career Advising team closely monitors and updates information received from AAMC, ERAS, NRMP, and individual programs as it becomes available. The general advising calendar provides current dates and timelines.
- Sample Medical Student CV (Word doc will download automatically)
- March 1, 2022: CV/SMS Workshop presentation slides and Q&A (2020)
- Sign up for your first MSPE Meeting
- MSPE Survey Instructions
- Noteworthy Characteristics Worksheet
- Sign Up for ERAS/Graduation Photos
- LOR request template
- Personal Statement Guidelines
- Dr. Woodruff's Personal Statement Worksheet
- Slides from Dr. Woodruff's Personal Statement Workshops
The Pritzker School of Medicine Alumni Ambassador Program connects current students with Pritzker alumni. Sign up and select "Pritzker School of Medicine Student" as your membership type to begin connecting with alumni at residency programs across the country.
- MS3 Spring Symposium Presentation (2/13/23)
- 2023-2024 Residency Process Book
- MS4 Meeting #1 (6/1/2023): Residency Application Overview
- Special Meeting: ERAS Program Signaling (6/14/23)
- MS4 Meeting #2 (6/27/2023): ERAS Overview
- MS4 Meeting #3 (9/18/2023): Interviewing for Residency
- MS4 Meeting #4 (1/22/2024): Preparing Your Rank List
Please note that we will add information from announcements as it is received. This list will not be comprehensive. All times are Central.
Upcoming Anesthesiology virtual open house listings
Upcoming Obstetrics & Gynecology virtual meet & greet listings
Penn State University Milton S. Hershey Medical Center Psychiatry residency open house - Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 6 p.m. REGISTER
First Meeting with Career Advisor:
Individual 30‐60‐minute meeting with your career advisor to discuss specialty choice and fourth year schedule.
- MSPE Meeting & Advisor Meetings
• Schedule your Medical School Performance Evaluation (MSPE)
meeting with Dr. Fromme - Continue to meet with your Career Advisor to finalize specialty choice
and develop an application strategy - Meet with your specialty advisor to discuss program selection
- Work on your personal statement and CV
- Ask for LORs
- Schedule a time to have your ERAS photo taken at Pritzker
Prepare your residency application
- Personal Statement Check‐In with Career Advisor
• Review and finalize your personal statement with your Career
Advisor’s input (can be done over email)
Optional Workshop: Optimizing Your Personal Statement
- MS4 Class Meeting #1: Residency Application Overview
• Review the timeline for the residency application process
Learn details and strategy for assembling your application
- MS4 Class Meeting #2: ERAS Overview
• Learn the logistics of applying for residencies via the Electronic
Residency Application System (ERAS)
Deadline to take Step 2 CK
- Program List Meeting with Career Advisor
• Schedule a 30‐minute meeting with your Career Advisor to review
your program list for depth and breadth
• Practice interview strategies - Submit ERAS Application before late September deadline
MS4 Class Meeting #3: Interviewing for Residency
- Learn tips from UCM Program Directors on how to interview successfully
- Learn about the Alumni Residency Hosting Program
Rank List Meeting with Career Advisor
• Schedule a 30‐minute meeting with your Career Advisor to discuss strategies for finalizing your rank list.
MS4 Class Meeting #4: Preparing Your Rank List
• Learn how to enter your rank list and strategies for finalizing it
Certify your Rank List by 8 p.m. CST
Match Day!
The timeline for ophthalmology (SF Match), urology (AUA Match) and the military match closely follow the timeline for the regular match above, except for a few key differences noted below.
- Urology applicants can register online at the AUA website.
- Applicants in ophthalmology can register online at the San Francisco Matching Service to begin working on their applications.
- Military match participants should check with their branch of service to being the residency application process.
- Target date for completing early match applications.
Interview & Decide Your Rank Order
- Accept interviews quickly
- Meet with your career advisor after you're done interviewing to discuss how to rank your programs
- Second half of October - All Urology program interview offers extended (must accept or decline in three days)
- Deadlines for submitting SF Match and AUA rank lists
- Notification of match results
- AUA rank list deadline - TBD January 2024
- San Francisco Match (ophthalmology) rank list deadline - TBD January 2024
Want to save money on your residency interview trips? Looking to make alumni connections where you might be living next year? The HOST program matches you with Pritzker alumni during your residency interviews.
A member from the Medical & Biological Sciences Alumni Association will email you throughout the process and update you on alumni availability. All requests must be made no later than two weeks prior to the requested host date. This will increase your chances of having an alumni host.
Though alumni hosts cannot be guaranteed in every city, we encourage students to submit requests in all geographic areas. Be aware it can take several days or weeks to locate a host for your stay.
If you have any further questions, please contact the alumni office directly at alumni@bsd.uchicago.edu or 888-303-0030.
Get discounts on airfare, car rental, and hotels here.
Note: The 2023 Residency Interview process may see more programs return to some degree of in-person interviews. While most programs remained virtual for residency interviews, many across specialties hosted in-person "second look" events after interview season. Many orthopaedic surgery programs returned to all in-person for interviews, as did a few general surgery programs. Additional programs could follow suit in 2023-2024.