UToledo Medical Students Match into Residencies in 24 Specialties

UToledo Medical Students Match into Residencies in 24 Specialties

One envelope, one moment, one goal.

Years of planning, study and sacrifice culminated Friday at the Stranahan Theater in downtown Toledo, where 164 University of Toledo fourth-year medical students gathered to open an envelope revealing where they will train as physicians for the next three to seven years.

"Toledo has given me more than I could have asked for and it's been a great four years," said Hannah Starbuck, who matched with the University of Michigan's neurology program. "I've met the friends of a lifetime here. And it's so exciting to see where everyone is going."

This year, UToledo medical students were matched into positions in 24 medical specialties. Internal medicine was the most popular program with 26 matches, followed by 13 matches in both family medicine and transitional year training. Anesthesiology, Orthopedic Surgery, and Psychiatry programs were each matched with 12 students.

"UToledo is a great program for both residency and medical school," said Matthew Folkman, who matched with UToledo's Orthopedic Surgery Residency program. "I mean, you're getting a well-rounded program where all the medical students are really collaborative together, work together and everyone wants to succeed. And I think it sets you up for any specialty you'd like."

UToledo medical students also matched into some of the more competitive specialties in the country, with two matches in neurological surgery programs, one in dermatology, one in plastic surgery and one in ophthalmology.

Many fourth-year medical students said that their UToledo medical school experience set them up for success in their respective residencies.

"The training I've received has been amazing," said Christian Harris, who will stay at UToledo in a diagnostic radiology residency. "And I know the training I'll receive as a resident will be even better."

"I think the camaraderie here is really top-notch," Folkman added. "Other places I rotated at didn't quite have the same level of camaraderie and that togetherness you can see in the program."

Elizabeth Schumacher, who matched with her top choice at Ohio State University's Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency program, said having her UToledo instructors available as mentors was pivotal to her residency match.

"Just having people there whom you can ask any question is really nice and helped guide me through this process," Schumacher said.

In total, students will begin training in residency programs in 34 different states. Of the 64 medical students who matched with programs in Ohio, 21 will begin their residency training right here at UToledo. The number of students matching in Northwest Ohio has increased from 20 in 2024 to 28 in 2026, and students matching at UToledo has grown from 15 to 21 over the same period. Michigan was the most popular state outside of Ohio with 26 matches.

With their residency destinations confirmed, UToledo's newest physicians, like Nick Bunda, who matched in emergency medicine with Corewell Health in Grand Rapids, Michigan, took a moment Friday to reflect on the journey behind them and the careers ahead.

"I've grown so much. At our white coat ceremony, Dr. [Christopher] Cooper said, 'You're going to all graduate and leave completely different people.' And he was right," Bunda said. "I feel like a new person. I'm very, very grateful for the opportunity to pursue medicine and help patients."