The Medical Student leadership team from the Department of Emergency Medicine will support you throughout your application process. Each year, we hold scheduled informational and advising sessions for students at determined intervals. Specifically, we meet with all third-year students to help them prepare for their fourth year.
The most time-sensitive portion of your third year is the application for away rotations. You will need to do one home (Madison campus, UWSMPH) fourth-year EM elective, and one away rotation in Emergency Medicine, both to be completed ideally by September 30, and both at sites with residency programs. When applying for away rotations remember to apply sooner rather than later. During the fall of your third year begin thinking about where you may want to apply for away rotations. Some programs begin taking applications for fourth-year rotations as early as January of your third year. Consider contacting the clerkship coordinator at any institutions you may be interested in to learn more about that program’s clerkship application process and deadline.
It is important that you request a Standardized Letter of Evaluation (SLOE) from each fourth-year Emergency Medicine rotation that you do, including home and away(s). Usually, these rotations are expecting you to ask for it!
In addition to obtaining a second evaluation of your EM clinical performance from a second SLOE, away rotations commonly serve two other purposes:
- Consider the rotation as a month-long interview for a specific residency program. Remember that all fourth-year EM rotations are “audition” rotations, meaning that they give you a chance to show your skills to faculty at residency programs you may be interested in and they allow you to assess whether or not the program is a good fit for you.
- Experience a different program type. You may find value in exploring a county hospital or a community hospital. If you try something different from your home institution it may give you a better idea about what types of residency programs you want to apply for.
If you have any questions or concerns about choosing fourth-year rotations to apply to, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team or to the medical student team at your home institution. You can also check out SLOE FAQs for Medical Students 
on the CORD (Council of Residency Directors in Emergency Medicine) website.
Writing Your Personal Statement
What to include or avoid when writing your personal statement...
Standardized Letters of Evaluation
Explains the types of SLOEs and how to request them...
Applying to Residency
Residency applications are submitted though the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS). Materials needed for a completed ERAS application include: MSPE, medical school transcript, three letters of recommendation, personal statement, Step 1 of USLME, and your CV. Application materials should be ready to be turned in by September 15th. Programs typically begin sending interview invitations mid-October. Before you submit your application make sure to double check that all information is correct and proofread your materials carefully.
For application instructions specific to the University of Wisconsin Emergency Medicine Residency Program visit the application section of our website.
There are many advising resources available. Check out the Student Advising Task Force’s Applying Guide.
Ranking & The Match Process
Students applying to residencies in Emergency Medicine are entered into the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP). NRMP collects rank order lists from both the applicants and the participating residency programs and then a computer algorithm matches students with programs based on their rankings. The Match is a binding agreement, meaning that once matched you must go to the institution that you matched with.
How many programs should you rank?
We recommend that you rank 12 programs. Why?
- If you rank 10 programs you have a ~95% probability of matching
- If you rank 12 programs you have a ~97% probability of matching
- The mean number of contiguous ranked programs for matched applicants: 10.8
- The number of unmatched applicants: 4.9
