Applicants indicate their preferences from among the programs they have applied to and wish to attend on Rank Order Lists. The final preferences of program directors and applicants, as reflected on the Rank Order Lists, will determine which positions are offered to which applicants and where the applicants are subsequently placed.

There are three categories of programs participating in the Match:

- Categorical – programs that begin in the PGY-1 year and provide the training required for board certification in medical specialties.
- Advanced – programs that begin in the PGY-2 year after a year of prerequisite training.
- Preliminary – one-year programs beginning in the PGY-1 year that provide prerequisite training for advanced programs.

Applicants submit a Primary Rank Order List, which may include preliminary or transitional, categorical, and advanced programs. The programs on the Primary Rank Order List are the driving forces behind the operations of the computer algorithm. An applicant submits Supplemental Rank Order List(s) only if he/she has ranked Advanced (PGY-2) positions on their Primary Rank Order List and wish, in addition, to secure a first-year (PGY-1) position. It is possible for an applicant to match to an advanced position, but not match to a PGY-1 program on the corresponding Supplemental List. In this case, the applicant is still committed to the advanced position and must seek a first-year position after the Match.

POWERPOINT PRESENTATION ON RANK ORDER (from the NRMP)

For information on

Preparing Rank Order Lists

Strategies

Rank Order List Fees, and

Submitting Rank Order Lists,

http://www.nrmp.org/res_match/special_part/us_seniors/order_list.html

Summary of Guidelines for the Preparation of Applicant Rank Order Lists

Applicants are advised to include on their Rank Order List only those programs that represent their true preferences.

- Programs should be ranked in sequence, according to the applicant's true preferences.
- Factors to consider in determining the number of programs to rank include the competitiveness of the specialty, the competition for the specific programs being ranked, and the applicant's qualifications. In most instances, the issue is not the actual number of programs being ranked on the Rank Order List, but the dilemma of whether to add one or more additional programs to the list in order to reduce the likelihood of being unmatched.
- Applicants are advised to rank all of the programs deemed acceptable to the applicant, i.e., a program where they would be happy to undertake residency training. (See Impact of Length of Rank Order Lists). Conversely, if an applicant finds certain programs unacceptable and is not interested in accepting offers from these programs, said program(s) should not be included on the applicant's Rank Order List.
- It is highly unlikely that either applicants or programs will be able to influence the outcome of the match in their favor by submitting a list that differs from their true preferences.